Evil Guy's Fantasies
by Joshua The Evil Guy
Summary: An anthology collection of started yet unfinished, potential fanfiction stories written by myself, involving anything my depraved twisted mind can fathom or invent. It seems to be a highly popular style of writing of late, so I thought I'd give it a shot.
1. Introduction

Title: _**The Evil Guy's Fantasies**_

Author: Joshua "_The Evil Guy_"

Summary: An anthology collection of started yet unfinished, potential fanfiction stories, most written by myself, involving anything my depraved twisted mind can fathom and invent. It seems to be a highly popular style of writing of late, so I thought I'd give it a shot.

Author's Notes:

Seriously, these are all just shorts and unfinished stories that I started writing, even mapped out the plots for a bit, but wound up losing inspiration for, or in the rare case, planned on keeping it short but never had time to finish it or post it as a stand-alone. Besides, I'm not so good with the stand-alone stories, I usually get begged for sequels or more chapters.

As for the disclaimers, well, for the most part, those will be put directly into the following 'chapters' themselves, and I'll try to avoid mixing different 'stories' into the same 'chapters', but it'll make for different lengths in each, just so everyone is aware. Mostly I write Buffy fanfiction, but I've recently branched into the HP and Naruto genres as well. If I branch out into other genres, expect an occasional addition somewhere down the line.

On the Rating... c'mon, let's be honest here, I'm an adult male American raised during the 90's. While not _**ALL**_ of the following stories/chapters will be for the adult/mature teens (older than 18), a good percentage of them will involve content not suited to anyone under the age of 18. Mostly we're talking adult content, foul language, and of course sex. You have been warned.

As always, you may contact me at my e-mail address . or just PM me from my author's page on here. I make sure to reply to every message I receive, unless it's just plain rude, offensive, or does not require a reply.

Enjoy!

;)

-- Joshua "_The Evil Guy_"


	2. Willow Wisp

**Ghost Girl:** _Willow Wisp_

Title: Ghost Girl: Willow Wisp

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: BtVS and the Ep "Halloween" belong to Joss Whedon and Mutant/Enemy Productions and this is crossed over with Nickelodeon's NickToon "_Danny Phantom_" or more just with the universe of Danny Phantom.

Spoilers: So far just the BtVS Ep "Halloween"

Feedback: For rants please contact me privately at . but for just basic reviews just reply wherever I've posted this story. Thank You.

Author's Notes: If anyone would like to try their hand at manipulating or drawing pictures of "Willow Wisp" please feel free to go ahead and try, all I ask is you send me a copy of the picture.

Story:

Spike was standing over the transformed "Lady" Buffy, while Soldier Xander and Angel were being held back by all of Spikes minions, both transformed kids and vampires, and Willow was a ghost, meaning she couldn't do anything.

However, Willow also had her own problems.

"Guys! Look out--!" Willow's shouted warning about what they probably already knew, was cut short when she felt a sudden force around her waist and a tug, pulling her back through the wall of the warehouse into the alley.

"Huh? What the . . . ???" Willow exclaimed even as she was being dragged back.

She managed to turn herself around and then suddenly screamed at what she saw. Everything anyone ever imagined about the "Grim Reaper", except glowing bright green with demonic red eyes beneath his dark hood, had one bony arm around her waist and was dragging her away, his immense, and brightly glowing and deadly looking scythe held in his other hand.

In response to her scream, the wraith-like figure merely growled, more in annoyance like he was tired of such reactions rather than any anger or intention of intimidation.

Then, just as suddenly as the ghost had grabbed her, she felt a completely different tug, actually it was more like something that had been holding her back, keeping her from something had just fallen away and she was now snapping back. In an instant, her ghost body disappeared from the real ghost's grasp, and her soul returned to her body.

The ghost stopped and then slowly looked around. Ironically enough, it's name _was_ the "Grim Reaper", emphasis on Reaper with the adverb use of Grim. Not seeing the spirit it had caught, it turned to it's scythe and demanded in an ethereal, commanding voice, "_**Where is she?**_"

* * * * *

Back in the warehouse, Xander and Angel had just fought their way free of the vampires holding them and just as Xander was bringing his weapon up to bear, the spell of chaos was broken and the gun turned back into the toy it really was.

"What the . . . ?" he asked, seeing the situation and suddenly realizing what had happened.

Spike stopped what he had been doing, about to take a drink of the transformed Slayer, and looked up, seeing that the mini-demons had been changed back into children. Then he fully stood up, and was surprised to see the Slayer's hair in his hand. Until he realized it was the dark haired wig she had been wearing as her costume.

"Hi honey, I'm home," Buffy the Vampire Slayer quipped as she hopped up from where Spike had been holding her down. Then she quickly and deftly proceeded to kick his ass as only a Slayer could. Realizing he couldn't win this, Spike just growled and escaped, leaving Buffy and the children, his remaining minions fleeing after him.

"Hey," Buffy said as she came up to Xander and Angel.

"You guys OK?" the souled vampire asked.

"Yeah, weirded out, but yeah, we're OK," Buffy answered for all of them.

"Do you remember . . . ?" Cordelia started to ask, but Xander interrupted her.

"Yeah, I remember all right. It was kind of like a weird dream, saw it all happening, but couldn't do anything about it."

"Well, we'd better get these kids back," Buffy suggested. Then she stopped and looked around quickly, "Hey, where's Willow?"

* * * * *

Back where Willow's body had fallen, the sheet-covered redhead suddenly gasped with breath in over several hours and jerked upwards, struggling to her feet. As she did, she nearly tore the costume covering her from her body, needing to feel fresh air on her body.

After a couple seconds breathing, her heart stopped racing, but continued beating, and she decided she had to get going, and let the guys know she was OK. Obviously Giles, or something, had ended the spell. For all she knew, it could have been that Grim Reaper creature that had grabbed her at the end. Although there was no way for her to know if the others were all right, given the sudden quietness on the streets, she had to assume that it was over.

But either way she should get going. Just as she was about to pull the sheet on, something stopped her. A thought. People, especially Xander, had already seen her in this getup Buffy had dressed her up in. So really, when she thought about it, there was no reason for her to cover herself up anymore.

With a confident sigh, Willow walked down the steps and as she passed the trashcan at the end of the drive next to the street, she tossed the sheet in and confidently stepped out into the world, for all the world to see her.

As she crossed the street, Willow never really noticed, or paid attention to the driver of the van sitting there at the stop sign, even as he intently watched her cross the street. Unfortunately, she neither noticed a malevolent shadow on the sidewalk that had seemingly detached itself from every other shadow there, and was undeniably following her.

The van pulled away, but the shadow . . . that shadow suddenly floated off of the ground and grew into a shape that spawned a lifetime of nightmares. It flew faster, and gradually got closer and closer to the unknowing redhead teenager.

A cold wind passed down Willow's spine, unconsciously making her look over her shoulder. When she did, fear blanked her mind and all she could do was scream.

* * * * *

Willow came too, unaware of blacking out at all, and found herself back in the alley where the Grim Reaper had been dragging her to just before she was returned to her body. The only difference was then she was a ghost and all fear was abstract at best. Now she was alive, and her heart was pumping in terror to confirm that.

Because holding her by her upraised, bound wrists, was the exact same green-glowing wraith that had grabbed her earlier. Except that he was most undoubtedly _not_ trying to help her this time. Especially considering how his scythe was right up against her throat and they were floating at least ten feet off the ground.

Even as she hung there, and his demonic glowing red eyes bored into her innocent human green eyes, her heart pounding and the cold metal of his green-glowing blade up against her skin was beginning to make her sweat, she couldn't stop her curiosity in wondering why this Symbol of Death Incarnate hadn't already taken her life. He'd had multiple opportunities, not the least of which was while she had been unconscious during his bringing her here.

She soon had her answer as instead of slitting her throat or just simply decapitating her, the Reaper pulled it's scythe back, and then as she watched, it slashed the air directly beneath them, and amazingly it was as if the the blade really had cut the air. A round portal quickly formed, a swirling green vortex of what Willow knew in her bones to be _actual_ ectoplasmic energy, roughly five feet from the ground, and directly beneath Willow and the floating wraith.

Her panic reached an all-time high and Willow's brain moved past the mind-numbing panic and into survival overdrive. She shouted out, asking, "What do you want with me?" She wasn't about to struggle in this outfit, especially not with her hands already over her head.

The Reaper's red eyes suddenly snapped to Willow's face, and for an instant she thought she detected something like curiosity in their depths.

"_**I do believe this is the first time a spirit has asked me a question and not just simply tried to fight me or get rid of me in some other way,**_" the Reaper observed in it's ethereal voice.

"What? What do you mean? I'm not a spirit!" Willow immediately protested.

The Reaper just snorted and despite being pupil-less, appeared to roll it's eyes. "_**Oh please, I've heard it a dozen thousand times. And you certainly aren't the first spirit to try and possess a human's living body, or maybe even recently deceased but still capable of living in order to avoid going to Ghost World. You have 30 seconds to leave the body you've taken, not that it really matters, your soul will still go on to Ghost World once you pass through the portal. No living creature can be transferred no matter passing through the portal or not.**_"

"I'm not dead! I am alive, and this is _my_ body!" now Willow was struggling but quickly realized that was useless and so just concentrated her energy on screaming. "HELP! HELP ME!!"

"_**Why are you shouting? Nobody is going to help a spirit like you, not that anyone is nearby to help you.**_"

At that moment, Buffy, Angel, and Xander, with the kids in tow, came racing around the corner. The moment the Slayer saw her friend's predicament, being able to see the ghost holding Willow because of her status as a Slayer, she wasted no time in racing forward and grabbing the first piece of trash from the ground that she could find and throwing it at the wraith. Instead of hitting it, the ghost, except for it's hand holding Willow, just turned entirely transparent, just a hair away from being invisible, and the projectile passed harmlessly through it to hit the far wall of the alley.

A foul, stereotypical evil laugh sounded from the Reaper and it turned it's demonic red eyed stare on the Slayer, who was staring, stunned, at it.

"_**You mortals are always so predictable. I don't care if this spirit really is your friend, it is going back to Ghost World! Where it will probably be enslaved by one of the older ghosts there, not that I care. Don't bother me humans!**_" A blast of green energy suddenly shot out and knocked all the people down below off their feet. The Reaper turned it's attention back to Willow.

"Don't hurt my friends!" Willow shouted, resolve face firmly in place. The Reaper smirked beneath the shadow of it's hood. It was actually impressed by that look, not that it would change anything.

"I thought you only took people to the afterlife after they were dead anyway!" Willow shouted, trying to buy more time.

Again, the Reaper snorted, "_**I'm not an Angel of Death, pathetic wimps that they are. I just go around picking up the spirits floating around haunting places on Earth, or are just too stupid to move on. I also have no heart and nothing like a conscience, you idiot. That's why I'm called the **__**Grim**_ _**Reaper. I don't love my job, but it's better than the purgatory I'd get in Ghost World.**_"

"Well then, I'd guess you'd hate going in my place then, huh?" Willow asked with a sudden smirk on her face.

Despite having no face, the confusion was clear coming from the Reaper. Until . . .

"Hey bozo!" a voice from above shouted. Both Reaper and Willow looked up and only had time to see a blonde blur wearing a bulky corseted dress before she hit, hearing her say, "Your rides here. Now let the girl go, she SAID NO!!"

At her shout, Buffy, supernaturally empowered to leap thirty feet in the air and hit all things inhuman, slammed her fist into the Reaper's head, knocking Willow free of his grip, and her own jump taking her further beyond the portal even as the Reaper was knocked down into it.

"_**NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!**_"

The Reaper slammed into the very portal it had created, it's falling into it, automatically closing it with an explosion of energy. Energy which Willow, still falling, was unfortunately caught up in.

With a scream of pain, Willow remained in the air for a couple more seconds before Angel and Xander, who had raced forward at the last second, caught her. Slowly, they sat her down on the ground, and let her rest for a moment.

Buffy raced over, having been clear of the explosion after knocking the Reaper into the portal, and was worried and beating herself up over what had just happened to her best friend.

"Willow? Are you . . . ?" Buffy trailed off as she saw her friend.

Willow looked up when Buffy didn't finish her question, concerned and then more panicked as she asked, "Buffy? What is it?"

Everyone, even the kids were all staring now. Beginning to really panic now, Willow looked down at herself, and then started staring herself.

Her red silk top with a plunging neckline, leaving her stomach completely bare, and wrapped around her curves like a silk cocoon, had turned into some kind of blue spandex material, covering the exact same amount of skin, but forming even closer than the silk had. Her black, hip-hugging, curve-enhancing mini-skirt had turned into a white, hip-enhancing, curve-revealing micro-mini, but still functional skirt. Her black silk stockings had also transformed, but into blue spandex tights, same as her top while her knee-high black leather boots had turned white, same as her skirt.

"What . . . ?" Willow couldn't form any thought to finish the question.

"Wills . . ." Buffy croaked, cleared her throat and tried again, "Wills, your hair . . . your _eyes_!"

"What! What about my hair? What about my eyes?" Willow was really panicking now, until Angel, the only one seemingly capable of moving at the moment, brought up a polished piece of metal, which could be used as a mirror.

Willow couldn't help staring even more than the others when she saw her reflection. Her hair, still styled the way Buffy had helped her earlier tonight, had turned shock white! And her eyes, her normal, human green eyes had turned _blue_! And they were _glowing_!

"Ahhh!" Willow screamed, throwing the metal away from her. At the same time, she just wanted to get away from what was going on. The whole costume thing, the Reaper, the portal to Ghost World, nearly dying, _actually_ dying . . . it was just too much!

"Willow!" Buffy's shout forced Willow to open her eyes, and instantly she wished she hadn't.

She was flying! And flying away from the group, until she had opened her eyes, then she just hovered in the air, looking down at herself and wondering what in the Hellmouth was going on. It didn't help that when she looked down, she saw that her legs had disappeared, leaving only a wispy white tail in their place.

"AHHHHHHH!!"

* * * * *

Later on, after the children had been returned to their parents and homes, the gang, Cordelia and Angel included, met with Giles in the Library, Willow, still with white hair, was the main topic of discussion.

"So . . . you're saying this . . . _Grim Reaper_, grabbed Willow and was threatening her with throwing her soul into a portal which lead to what it called "_Ghost World"_?" Giles asked, sounding perplexed beyond description.

"Uh, yeah," Buffy answered, sounding like she was only now realizing how insane the whole thing sounded.

"And after you punched this Grim Reaper, knocking it into the portal, the portal exploded, leaving Willow . . . like this?" Giles asked.

Willow had finally figured out how to control her flight, and had proven to Giles that it could be done by zooming around the room a few times, but always went back onto her feet, preferring human things as much as she could, despite whatever powers this accident had granted her.

"Yep," Willow answered this time, who looked very strange and definitely different with the white hair and glowing blue eyes, a vivid contrast to her normal red hair and green eyes.

"Any watchery thoughts going in that Watcher mind of yours G-man?" Xander asked.

Giles shot the youth an annoyed look, but mostly was just pacing and kept glancing up at Willow. "It's not possible for this to be a side effect of Ethan's spell. Aftereffects like these just don't happen. There must be something about the portal. Describe it, there may be a chance that something like this has happened before."

"That's right!" Willow suddenly exclaimed. "I'll get on the computer and start some searches."

Just as she got to the computer though, with everyone staring at her, which caused her to feel like falling through the floor . . . she did.

One second she had been taking her next step, the next, her entire body, surrounded by an iridescent blue glow, turned entirely transparent, and she began to fall through the floor.

"Aahhhhhhhhhh!" she screamed even as her head was suddenly in the boiler room beneath the Library, but she was still transparent and kept on falling until she found herself in a collapsed ruins of what could have been a church, only with a pool of blood at the center of it.

"Aahhhhhhhhhh!" screaming again, she flew back up as fast as she could, still transparent.

When she got back to the surface, Buffy had been ready to start tearing the floor apart and everyone was panicking. When Willow, still transparent, but now flying, came up through the floor screaming, everybody else started screaming, and even Angel felt his unbeating heart jump a little.

"Sorry," Willow apologized, after everyone had finished screaming, now fully visible and with her feet firmly on the ground again.

"It's all right Wills," Buffy waved off the apology. "We'll figure this out. There must be someway to change you back to the good ole regular Willow again."

"Yeah, with her geeky hair, bad dress sense, and no make-up, too innocent for her own good, without a boyfriend life. At least this way she actually looks hot," Cordelia commented.

Despite being angry with Cordelia, Willow figured the High School débutante did have a point. But she wanted to be _her_ again. She wanted to be Willow!

"Cordelia, I'm warning you," Buffy started to threatened, but was interrupted by what could have been a miracle. As Willow stood there wishing she was back to normal, a perfect ring of bright white light formed around the center of her body, and then split in two, one going up, the other going down her body. In the aftermath of the rings travel, her normal body, still in her "inner costume", was revealed until the rings finally disappeared at the top of her head and bottom of her shoes respectively.

"Whoa," Willow muttered, feeling tingly all over. Then she noticed her change, and to be sure grabbed a lock of her hair and held it in front of her eyes so she could see that it was indeed red again. She let out a heavy sigh of relief and almost slumped where she stood, but Xander and Buffy were both nearby to keep her upright.

"Oh . . . my . . ." Giles could only mumble.

"Well, some people can be cleaned up," Cordelia said with a huff of jealousy, crossing her arms and walking out of the Library.

END


	3. Job Offer From Hell Return to Hogwarts1

_**Harry Potter:**_

_**Return to Hogwarts**_

Disclaimer: J.K. Rowling is the only person that can truly write Harry Potter stories and she should be the only one who does. I am writing this for two reasons. I've got a bug up my butt about an idea involving HP, and two, I would like to pay Mrs. Rowling a deep and heart felt compliment that I respect her stories so much.

Time line: 30 years after Harry and his friends graduated from Hogwarts. Harry is 49, Hermione and Ron are both 50, seeing as their birthdays are before Harry's I believe. Ginny is 47. Because they're all wizards though, they look like they're in their early thirties.

Assumptions made by the author: Voldemort was defeated/killed in Harry's seventh year and Harry, Ron, and Hermione graduated Hogwarts despite unique circumstances, Ginny became a Prefect in her fifth year. Colin Creevy was the male prefect for Ginny's year. Minerva McGonagall became Headmaster after Albus died, and kept the position for 15 years before retiring herself. Severus Snape, who was ultimately and unbelievably redeemed, even by Harry himself, took the position after her.

Rubeus Hagrid stayed on as Hogwarts Gameskeeper and Keeper of the Keys and Professor of Magical Creatures, even after Snape took over as Headmaster. Neville Longbottom, after a promising career as an independent Herbalist, applied and was approved to take over as Professor of Herbology at Hogwarts. Neville's still terrified of Snape, but he respects him all the same. Neville also married Hannah Abbot, who became the 'flight' instructor and Quidditch Referee at Hogwarts and became Head of Hufflepuff house.

Harry, upon graduation and the destruction of Voldemort, applied for the position of Auror with the Ministry of Magic, and despite problems with the Ministry administration succeeded in becoming an Auror. Ron, surprising everyone and himself, managed to get recruited to one of the National Quidditch teams and enjoyed four seasons of National Championships before being forced to retire due to injury. After that, he moped around for about a year before chance gave him the opportunity of a lifetime that Ron turned into the second best thing that ever happened to him. He got a position in the Ministry of Magic, in the Department of Games and Sports. Specifically in the Quidditch area of expertise.

Hermione immediately strove into politics as soon as she graduated, and by the time she was 25, became the youngest Minister of Magic in the history of the Ministry itself. After she served all her terms, she married and had a family roughly about half the size of Ron's. It might have had to do with the fact that she married Ron. The year that Snape became Headmaster at Hogwarts, Hermione became the new Transfiguration teacher. Of course it might have helped that Harry was there the day that Hermione applied and sat with her in her interview with Snape.

Harry was the best Auror since Mad-Eye Moody himself. His first year was pretty rough, learning the ropes, but he pulled through. After that... well lets just say he _always_ got his crook. Whether that was bringing them in... or bringing in what was left of them. His reputation alone easily outranked Voldemort's as the Dark Lord for being the best Auror ever, and the most powerful Wizard since Albus Dumbledore disappeared. Some, usually the criminals he was chasing, started to call him the "White Lord".

Many, many other things happened between then and 'now', but don't want to ruin the story. You'll find out as things continue and people talk of the "past".

Enjoy :)

**Chapter 1:**

_**Snape's Proposition**_

Harry James Potter was sitting alone at his table in the Leaky Cauldron. A butter beer was placed in front of him, mostly full, but it did show signs of having been drunk, an open copy of the _Daily Prophet_ lay beside that, and a small picture with the people inside it moving about as all Wizard photographs did.

Harry's attention, for the moment, was on a pair of wizards that had walked into the Leaky Cauldron about thirty minutes ago. The moment passed and his gaze shifted to the bar where Tom the Young, proprietor, owner of the Leaky Cauldron, and youngest daughter of the last proprietor, Old Tom, she was wiping down the counter from spilled butter beers while listening to a story between a pair of witches and a 9-year-old boy who probably was one of the witch's son.

Harry moved his eyes to the other side of the room, to focus on another wizard. His attention continued to move around the room with the same intensity for the same amount of time. He had been sitting there in the Leaky Cauldron since Lunch, and only because Thomasina had sent him elsewhere for midday meal, because otherwise he would have been sitting in that same place since 3 AM last night.

He wouldn't talk with anyone except the witch that had kicked him out, and kept him filled on butter beer. And even then, it was only to talk about her life, her business, and to order more beverages. Try as anyone might, no one could get the legendary Harry Potter to talk about what was bothering him.

One person, however, already knew.

And he just walked in from the back door that lead to Diagon Alley.

Harry stiffened when he felt him. Ever since he had graduated Hogwarts and the final battle with his dead enemy Voldemort, Harry had been able to feel the presence of every human that carried the mark of the Death Eaters, or ever had. Voldemort had been able to do the same.

The man walked carefully, but at the same time there was an air about him that made his walk just as regal and confident as it was cautious, between the tables and the patrons, until he was standing directly behind Harry's chair.

"What do you want?" growled the Auror without turning around and grabbing his beer and vanquishing its contents with one gulp.

The man walked slowly around the table until he was standing beside the chair opposite Harry. He was tall, not as tall as Harry anymore, his hair a dark and greasy gray, a short silvery beard starting around his chin, and his sallow, wrinkled face was etched in a permanent scowl. If Harry ever needed proof of the old saying 'don't make faces, yours might just stick that way one day', he had it right in front of him.

"Potter," Professor Snape, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry drawled. Harry was surprised to hear far less loathing in that voice than the last time he'd heard it.

"What. Do. You. Want?" Harry repeated slowly, glaring angrily at Snape.

"Always straight to the point with you, isn't it Potter? Never any time for small talk or pleasantries..."

"What the hell do you want _Professor_?" Harry almost shouted at his old enemy.

Snape, against what Harry's childhood memories told him, looked worried for half a moment, but soon returned to the expression he had been wearing. Then Harry remembered his own reputation and he didn't bother smothering the swell of satisfaction that came from it.

"I'm here to offer you a proposition," Snape told him forthwith.

"No," Harry said immediately while raising his tankard, indicating he wanted another drink. Tom ignored him.

"Oh, believe me Potter, I'd love nothing more than to walk out of this..." he looked around and frowned, deepening his sallow wrinkles, "...this establishment, and leave you to wonder for months about what I, I of all people, Severus Snape, Headmaster of Hogwarts, wanted to talk to _you_ about. And then see the look on your face when you finally found out."

"Sounds like old times," Harry sarcastically snapped. "Thanks for giving me something to do over the next, oh, say _week_! Now get out of my sight Death Eater."

"You yourself removed that mark years ago," Snape replied snappishly.

Harry glared at him.

"May I sit down?" Snape indicated the chair he was standing next to.

Harry gave him a horrid grin, and shook his head no. Then he turned angrily towards the bar, raised his tankard and whistled shrilly. Several fragile glasses around the room cracked or shattered at the sound. Tom glared at him, but all the same, grabbed the pitcher of beer and headed out to Harry's table.

"What are you still doing here?" Harry asked as he began to fold up his copy of the _Daily Prophet_.

"Because as much as I would like to give my proposition to someone else, _anyone_ else... I can't. You are the only one that... Well, let me put it in a way you'll enjoy Potter. You're my last hope."

Harry looked up at Snape's face, and then did a double take. If ever it were possible, Snape actually looked like he was _begging_ Harry Potter for a favor!

"OK, now _this_ I've got to hear," Harry laughed, his mood slightly improved. "What's your proposition?"

"May I sit down?"

At that moment, Thomasina walked up and refilled Harry's tankard and then turned to Snape. "May I get you something Headmaster?" she asked casually, as though Snape were here as often as Harry was.

"Thank you my dear. I would like a small Cynical cider, if you would please?" Snape politely ordered the proprietor.

"Comin' right up Professor," Tom scurried off behind her bar.

"What's your proposition?" Harry asked before Snape could so much as move again. The Headmaster slowly turned and scowled at the man sitting before him. Reminding Harry fondly of the "good ole days".

Snape continued to just stare at him until Tom returned with the Professor's drink, which he took graciously, and gave her a decent tip, still standing. Just before he took a drink, he said, quite seriously, "I want you to be the Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher this term at Hogwarts." Then he quickly took a long sip of his Cynical cider.

Harry stared for a second, half still waiting for Snape to tell him this proposition, until his old enemy's words finally caught up to him.

"You're joking!" Harry exclaimed loudly, already starting to laugh.

Half finished with his cider, Snape gave Harry that disappointed/disgusted glare he always used to give him, and then replied, with, "I most assuredly am not Potter. I want you to be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher."

Harry was no longer laughing. His face quite serious, he sat straighter, yet at the same time more casually in his chair and then pointed with his left hand at the one across from him. "Sit," he ordered.

Snape sat, happily finishing his cider as he did so.

"Tom!" Harry shouted, and not the kind of shout just to be heard over the din. In a flash of an instant, the woman was beside the legendary Auror.

"Yes Mr. Potter," she said with more respect than she had spoken so far. In fact, it bordered on fear even.

"Fire whiskey. Two bottles. Recent stuff. Keep the good stuff for an occasion that deserves it." Harry ordered, his eyes never leaving Snape's.

Tom hesitated, but after several moments, and taking one look at Harry's expression, she finally just bowed and mumbled something like, "Yes sir," before going off to get the requested drinks.

"Since when did you become such a drinker, Potter?" Snape teasingly asked.

Harry just continued to stare.

"I know."

"Know what exactly?" Harry countered.

"Several things, all of which will make you accept my proposition," Snape answered confidently. "First of all, as of yesterday at noon on the dot, you were forced into retirement from the Auror's. Secondly, I am only coming to you because you are my last option... and as a favor to one of my colleagues. Someone that I am very sure you would like to meet again."

Harry just stared, but he knew exactly who Snape was talking about.

"Lastly... a very personal reason that I'm not going to mention aloud in a place like this due to my... respect of what you have done for the past forty years Potter. If not for the seven or so before that. But all the same, I'm sure you know exactly what I'm talking about." Snape rested his case as Tom came back with the bottles of Dragon Whiskey and a refill for Snape's cider.

Without changing his eye contact or posture at all, Harry opened the first bottle, poured a shot from the provided glass, and quickly downed the smoking liquid. He winced slightly, but other than that, he never stopped staring at Snape.

"I have never liked you," Harry told him.

Snape nodded, conceding this truth, and admitting his half of the dislike as well.

"So what in all of the two worlds on this planet makes you think that I'm going to agree to accepting a proposition that will make you my boss?" Harry snapped.

"Do you know... what year this is?" Snape asked slowly, sipping his cider.

Harry's eyes narrowed dangerously. He might be an ex-Auror of one day, but he was still carrying his 'Fawkes' Phoenix-feather wand and he was certainly still allowed to use magic. Against other wizards was a nice little sub-note in his extermination contract. He couldn't do it officially, but legally, he could still hunt down rogue wizards and throw them in prison.

"I thought you might. I'm giving you an opportunity here Potter. I suggest you don't waste it. If not for your own sake then for..."

"Shut up," Harry whispered. Snape shut up.

He downed another shot of the whiskey, this time not even so much as flinching as he glared into Snape's eyes.

"How much time do I have to consider this proposition of yours?" he asked angrily.

"Until I get up from this table," Snape, severely over confident, preened.

Harry took a deep breath and let out a long, low sigh. He took another shot, and then another, before finally corking the whiskey. Finally, he broke eye contact with Snape. For a moment he seemed to be either hiding his face, or meditating.

"And I thought my day couldn't get any worse," Harry mumbled as he looked up.

"Start talking," Harry ordered. "What exactly will be involved with my accepting this proposition of yours?"

Snape seemed to hesitate, or appeared to be gathering his thoughts for whatever the correct answer was. After a few moments, and finishing his cider, he answered Harry with a list of the requirements.

"All teachers live at Hogwarts during their tenure, except with a few exceptions during the holidays. You will provide me with a complete lesson plan of each class you will have with all years, first through seventh. Also, this is really more of a side note and certainly not a requirement for one such as yourself..." Snape began to sound a bit condescending.

"Careful Snape," Harry warned him with a glare and another shot of whiskey down his throat.

Snape looked uncomfortable for a moment before clearing his throat and finishing where he left off. "Um, yes, there is also the option of you being the Head of one of the Houses. As I said, not a requirement, but still an option."

"That's it?" Harry asked, sounding surprised, but still looking as intense as ever.

"Just the minor details," Snape answered. "You'll receive the standard teacher's pay of 45 Galleons per month. An additional 5 if you take on further responsibilities such as being the Head of one of the Houses or another extracurricular activity for the school. If it's not a position that's open, you'll have to run it by me of course." Snape gave a horrid, sallow grin that made his wrinkles uglier than when he scowled.

"Of course," Harry agreed with an aloof air.

"Anything else we can go over later... if you agree," Snape gave the ultimatum as he sat his empty glass down and made to get to his feet.

Harry continued to glare at the third absolute worst teacher he had ever had in school. The first two had of course been temporary Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers.

"Are you hoping I'll break the record and either lose my memory, get booted, get killed, or run away screaming before the end of the term?" Harry joked with a laugh.

Snape grinned again, but shook his head. "I have it on fairly good authority Potter that it would be quite the opposite, if you accepted of course."

"That I'd come back for a second term?" Harry asked, unable to deny curiosity.

Snape just continued to grin.

"Where on grounds would I be staying?" Harry asked.

"There are many suites available to new teachers, or if you wish to, you can remain in your office for sleeping. I would expect, however, that you would at least on occasion emerge to fraternize with the fellow teachers." Snape answered.

Harry nodded. He had a lot to think about, and not a lot of time to do it in. He had just lost his job, the only one he had ever wanted to do and that he was acclaimed and acknowledged for being the best at it. The royalties that such fame and positions afforded him had given Harry a liking for a certain level of lifestyle. One that he certainly couldn't keep without some source of income. Despite his still large stash of gold in Gringotts, it wasn't infinite.

And then there were the three reasons Snape had given him. He did know what year this was, and that was the foremost thing on his mind at the moment.

He picked up the photograph from the table and he looked at the occupants. His family, of what it consisted of, ten years previous. He paid a particularly close eye to the people near the front. Himself standing next to a radiantly beautiful red-haired woman, and the infant being held between them. Hagrid in the background. Hermione and Ron on the left side, just behind the woman next to Harry. Neville and his family just behind Harry, and just off to the side, still trying to hide from being in the front or visible at all, Professor McGonagall. The picture had been taken at her retirement party. It had been the last time all of them had been together like that.

Harry wasn't too keen on spending the rest of his life doing something that might resemble Mad-Eye Moody's retirement years, or regretting and wanting to go back and live his life over again because it might as well be over right now.

Going back to Hogwarts, not just to remember the good ole days, but to do something even more important with the rest of his life as he had spent the first half. Passing on what he knew and had learned to the wizards and witches of the future, giving hope and knowledge, and maybe even a stern hand in molding some of the people that would be graduating from Hogwarts for the next few years. At the very least he could prevent anybody else like Tom Riddle or Draco Malfoy from coming out of Hogwarts.

It wasn't until he had had another shot of Dragon whiskey that Harry realized that he had already made his decision, he was just making up excuses for his own mind as to why.

"All right Snape, you've got yourself a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," Harry Potter stood and shook hands with Professor Snape.

"Excellent," Snape was now business as usual as he wrapped his robes closer around him, seeming to draw an invisible shield between himself and the rest of the universe. "I'll expect to see you on the first of the term. If you have any further questions, I'm afraid I'll have to answer them by correspondence. Good day Potter."

"Adios Professor Headmaster, sir," Harry casually replied, sitting back down to his drinks.

Later that evening, Harry was wondering what the hell he had gotten himself into. And he wasn't talking about getting drunk on fire whiskey. He'd already done that more than enough times in his life to know what to expect.

Just before closing time, Harry had finally left the Leaky Cauldron, and went home. He had built his home, after a few years saving that is, at the very spot where his parents had built theirs, where Voldemort had killed them, and given him the scar he had carried for all of his life now.

His home was a two story brownstone mansion, surrounded by a seven foot brick wall, which just happened to have the most secure security spells and jinxes on it that existed in the wizarding world. In fact, a couple of the defenses on his home were technically illegal to have in use, but given his reputation, and that those... defenses would only activate if a particular violator demanded such a harsh response, the Ministry was glad to look the other way for once.

He also had a little yard room for a garden, used for certain special remedies that were so rare that more often he was approached by some wizards for his latest crop of an herb or a magical plant. Harry smiled warmly as he noticed that Neville had dropped by to take care of his garden during his... off-day. Harry only let three people touch his garden. Himself, Neville Longbottom, and only one other person. If she were ever visiting that is.

In the back yard he had an Olympic sized pool, which actually connected to an underground cavern that he had created and filled with water. He needed some place to put the herd of Dewgong that he had saved from poachers, seeing as no one in the Ministry was going to do anything immediately about putting them back in their natural habitat, which they had been driven out of by human habitation.

At least they got along with Gyro, the sea dragon that Hagrid had given Harry for his 20th birthday. Those types of dragons were supposed to be powerful, and very dangerous, but if you managed to successfully train one, well let's just say that they're a better watch dog than Fluffy was.

Harry walked into his home and was immediately assaulted the moment that he closed the door.

"Harry Potter, sir! A relief Dobby feels in seeing your safe return, sir!" the old house-elf exclaimed with relief pouring from him in waves. "When sir did not return, Dobby feared... he _feared_ for Harry Potter! But Ariana said, she said sir was only sad and depressed and would return when he felt like it. Dobby was extremely worried sir, but he knows Ariana is always right about such things, so he waited, and waited... and now Harry Potter has returned!"

Immediately, after having already taken Harry's cloak and shoes during his long speech of relief, the house-elf began to do a sort of half-jig, which he always did whenever he was overwhelmingly happy, in Harry's experience.

"So where is the little minx?" Harry asked with a smile, despite his sour mood.

"She's in the kitchen sir," Dobby replied as he took the last of Harry's travel things and placed them by the door in their specific places. "She started cooking an hour ago, but would not explain to Dobby why, sir."

Harry just laughed and started towards the kitchen.

Just as he entered the room, a gust of mouth watering smells reached his nostrils and made him pause as he looked at the making of a feast that would rival all the feasts at Hogwarts.

"Ari... what have you been up to?" Harry asked, trying to sound stern.

A female house elf that looked like youth itself with bright green eyes and dressed in a pure white toga with the letters HP stitched onto their front, turned and stared up at the wizard. "Harry!" she yelled and as if by magic, she launched herself from the stool she stood on to around Harry's neck.

"Ariana was worried about Harry!" the house elf said in a lilting, youthful girl's voice. "Harry should have called home so Dobby didn't worry. Ariana knew where Harry was, but was sad because Harry was sad. But now Harry's not sad anymore, so Ariana is making all of Harry's favorite dinners!"

"All at once?" Harry couldn't help laughing, looking around the kitchen, easily holding his house elf.

Ariana spoke as all house elves did. The one thing that Harry always insisted on though was that with the exception of having wizarding company over, Ariana was to always refer to Harry as 'Harry'. Never 'master', and if there was a wizard or witch visiting, she would call him 'Mister Harry' or 'Mister Potter'.

Dobby came into Harry's employ shortly after Dumbledore left Hogwarts. And it was _employ_ because Harry, partially pressured by Hermione and her constant S.P.E.W. Efforts, and partially because he felt that Dobby deserved it, he paid Dobby 5 Sickles a week for staying in his home and maintaining the grounds and housekeeping.

It wasn't until Dobby had been working for Harry for five years that surprising news came about. Dobby, with his old friend from Hogwarts, Drippy were having a child. That child was Ariana.

Unfortunately, it was a wizard, and elf, law that a newborn house elf _must_ be bound to the same wizard family that his or her family was. And since Dobby and Drippy were both unattached to a wizard family, Dobby begged Harry to adopt his daughter and thereby save her and have himself a true house elf as well. Harry, simply because the infant elf would have died if he had not bound her to him, gladly did it and named her Ariana.

Since then, Harry was more like Ariana's favorite uncle rather than her bound wizard master. Dobby remained in Harry's employ, and happily helped in raising his daughter beside Harry, although they both still spoke in that 3rd person way that all house elves did.

"Why was Harry sad?" Ariana asked, ignoring Harry's.

Harry sighed, feeling a pang of sadness echo through his heart. He noticed Ariana's ears droop slightly, and he couldn't help laughing a little. He often wondered about the almost psychic connection that Ariana had with him, but he just chocked it up to one of those house elf things.

"I lost my job yesterday Ariana," Harry told her truthfully, walking around the kitchen and letting the young elf take care of or turn off some of the meals being prepared, as needed.

"Oh Harry," she moaned sympathetically.

"Dobby is sorry for Harry Potter's loss," Dobby said, also sympathetic as he entered the kitchen.

"And I got a new one today," Harry finished.

Both elves ears went skyward with excitement, it was almost funny. "Oh that is wonderful news Harry!" Ariana exclaimed. "Is that why Harry came home today and not yesterday? Is that also why Harry smells like Fire whiskey?"

Blushing fiercely, Harry turned his head away slightly, but he nodded. "Well, actually, that has more to do with... what job I got, and who offered it to me."

"What, if I may be so bold to ask sir, is Harry Potter's new job?" Dobby asked.

Ariana snorted. She had been raised by Harry to treat him like an equal, and she always made fun of Dobby for treating Harry with more respect than he wanted.

"Well let me put it like this Dobby, how would you like to move back to Hogwarts?" Harry asked, a hint of a smile forming on his face.

However he was not expecting Dobby's ears to suddenly droop as low as he had ever seen them and a look of depressed horror cross the house elf's face.

"Ohh! Harry Potter cannot afford to keep Dobby anymore, so now Harry Potter must do what Harry Potter must do, and now Harry Potter is sending Dobby back to Hogwarts, which is a fine and wonderful place, the place that Dobby went when Harry Potter freed Dobby from the horrid, horrible Malfoys. And now Harry Potter must do what Harry Potter must do and send Dobby away and back to Hogwarts..."

"Oh Dobby be quiet!" Ariana snapped.

"Harry, what is your new job?" she asked even as Dobby kept muttering to himself how useless he was.

Harry couldn't keep the grin off his face as he answered her, "I am the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher at Hogwarts."

Dobby's ears picked up at that.

"Who was it that gave Harry such a prestigious position?" Ariana asked, suspicious.

Now Harry's own ears would have drooped if they could have. His smile certainly did. "Snape," he answered simply. "Who else but the Headmaster of Hogwarts himself?"

"But... doesn't the current headmaster _hates_ Harry?" the female house elf asked, sounding confused.

"He's desperate," Harry succinctly answered her question.

"So..." Dobby lead, but dared not to ask.

Harry smiled and answered the unasked question anyway. "No, I am not kicking you out Dobby, and yes, you are coming with Ariana and myself to Hogwarts when we move there when the term starts. But, in the mean time, lets finish making supper, eat it, and after dinner, then we can discuss any other future plans we might be making. All right?"

His house elves happy and not threatening physical violence against themselves, Harry quickly picked up some of the ingredients laying around the kitchen and quickly helped Ariana with the cooking. Something he had forced himself to do shortly after graduating Hogwarts was learn how to cook, and while he wasn't even a two-star chef, he could cook up a meal that he could survive on. When Dobby and then Ariana came into his home, meals became far more pleasant and satisfying.

After supper was ready, they all quickly set out the table and then dined in the main dining room. Another thing that Harry did that most other Wizards never did, was eat with his house elves. Especially when Harry, living alone, had no one else to dinner, Ariana and Dobby both had their very own places and plates of food.

Later on that evening, Harry was in his sitting room with a novel that he had been reading for about a week now. He was reading the last few chapters, wanting to finish it, and the last bit of home comfort he would have, before having to start packing for the move to his new vocation.

Ariana came by and sat where she usually did when Harry was reading, on the arm of his chair. For about five whole minutes, they remained silent, Harry reading, and his house elf watching him read.

Finally, the staring got to him and with a sigh, Harry closed the book and blurted out, "What is is Ari?"

"Great opportunity as this is Harry, and at such a needed time, Ariana can tell that Harry does not want to go back to Hogwarts," the House Elf spoke with no doubt and little hesitation.

Harry sighed and put his book down, leaning his head back to stare at the ceiling, he finally admitted it to himself. He never could hide anything from Ari.

"I'll get over it," he told himself as much as his House Elf. "But for now, I need you to be packing our things. I've got some affairs to put in order, and I'll be leaving for Diagon Alley in the morning. Don't worry too much about me Ari. It's probably going to be better than I'm dreading. And I'll get to see Hermione again."

"And _her_," Ariana added slyly.

Harry glared at her, and very nearly became actually angry with the young elf. He reigned in his temper though, something he'd always had a little trouble with. "Please don't mention her again," he requested almost deathly silent.

At that moment, Dobby hobbled into the sitting room and requested just loud enough for human ears to hear, "Come Ariana. Dobby and Ariana must prepare Harry Potter's things for the morning, and begin packing."

"I'll be all right Ari," Harry reassured her, "Now off with you."

With a slight bow, Ariana jumped down and quickly scrambled after her father to do a House Elf's work. Leaving Harry alone, finally, and with much to think about.


	4. Kal'El of Konoha promo

Title: "Kal-El of Konoha"

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Naruto, unfortunately, is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto, who is starting to (minimally) make up for the Sasuke-centric plots of Shippuden by introducing 'Sage Mode' and long-range version of 'Fuuton: Rasenshuriken!" but still has a ways to go to get true redemption from all the fans, IMHO. "Kal-El" aka Superman by his Kryptonian name, is owned by DC Comics, and he's been rebooted so many times that only the company really owns the trademark anymore. This particular reboot has Kal-El being blond and blue-eyed rather than dark-haired and black/brown-eyed. Also, instead of Smallville, Kansas, USA, his ship lands in Konohagakure, Hi no Kuni. And instead of the Kents, he's adopted by the 4th Hokage's In-Laws; the Uzumaki's.

Summary: The 4th never had a son, so he used an orphan from a crashed spaceship to seal the Kyuubi into. 3rd Hokage hid the spaceship and only ever told Jiraiya about the secret. Follows the story of young Naruto Uzumaki, the last son of Krypton as he becomes a shinobi and discovers his heritage as Kal-El of Krypton.

Story:

Luck can be good or bad. At the same time, one can have good luck but still have bad stuff happen to them, and vice versa. One such boy, grew up to have all the luck in the world in just about everything, but bad things followed him like starving wolves outside a caravan.

Bad things happen to everyone, is the saying. Then again, having your whole planet and entire race blown up, sent to a distant world where upon arrival you are used as a living sacrifice to hold the most powerful tailed demon beast on said world inside your stomach and then being raised in a hidden ninja village that hates and ostracizes you for having said demon sealed inside of you would probably take the cake on 'Worst Things That Could Possibly Happen To One Person' and still have leftovers for 'Unluckiest Bastard In The Universe'.

Still, Naruto Kal-El Uzumaki doesn't believe in luck, or fate, or 'bad things just happen'. He believes in making his own fate and protecting those he cares about, and that's it. He never goes back on his word and always tells the truth and will one day become Hokage, and perhaps something more as well.

Naruto's story begins in a star system far, far away a long time ago. On the planet Krypton, a scientist named Jor-El made a startling discovery. His planet, the planet of Krypton, was going to blow up. The core had become unstable, and the radiation from their red giant sun wasn't helping matters any. He did everything he could to find absolute proof one way or the other, that he was wrong or that the planet really was going to blow up and that they had enough time to evacuate everyone to safety.

He was, unfortunately, unable to prove either, as his data was not understood for what it truly meant, so nobody acted in time to save any number of the population. And it wouldn't matter anyway, since according to his calculations there wouldn't be enough time to save everyone. In fact, he only had enough time to save one person. His only son, Kal-El. He was blond like his mother, a surprise since the men of the House of El usually were dark haired, but he had his own blue eyes.

The day he was going to test the prototype escape pod, able to enter and exit hyperspace with a brand new computer and power source, was the last day Krypton had. There was no time, no other ship, no other way, so Jor-El and his wife Lara sent their only son to a distant planet to save his life and give him a chance to make a difference in the universe.

Unfortunately, it was a prototype ship, and it exited the hyperspace window at a slightly different angle than it had originally been programmed with, so it did not land where it was supposed to have on the planet known as _Earth_ by the inhabitants, nor did it land _when_ it was supposed to either.

Instead of October of 1989 and the continent of North America in Kansas, it landed in October of 1990 in South East Asia in the hidden Elemental Country of Fire, Hi no Kuni, near the Hidden Ninja Village of Konoha. Accompanied by a meteor shower of course.

The meteors killed many civilians and even a few unfortunate, unguarded shinobi in the first five minutes. Thankfully after that, everyone was evacuated to the shelters and the meteor storm only lasted a total of fifteen minutes. In the aftermath, the meteors were all gathered into one spot and then sealed away by the Hokage, Minato Namikaze.

At the same time, Minato himself, alongside his wife Kushina discovered something that was most definitely not a meteor. It was young Kal'El's escape pod, and upon the Hokage approaching it scanned him briefly before opening up to its precious cargo. Minato and Kushina immediately took the child and claimed him as theirs before Minato's predecessor, the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi. Sarutobi and Minato hid away the spaceship, alongside the scrolls containing all of the meteors that had fallen, and Minato and Kushina named the child Naruto.

The day after the meteor shower, the Kyuubi no Kitsune was unleashed upon Konoha.

It took most of the day for the ninja to lead the demon beast away from the center of the village, and they were mostly spared due to the fact that the Kyuubi was disoriented, like it was in some kind of trance. That did not take away from it's anger, killing intent, or the destruction it caused by just releasing it's chakra. By that night, Minato had come to a horrible decision.

He could not ask of the village that which he was not willing to give of himself, and he was the Hokage, he was supposed to put the needs of the village above everything else.

In other circumstances, Kushina would have been severely weakened, if not outright dead from giving birth to her only son. In these circumstances, Kushina played the prank that saved her husband's life and her adopted child's soul. At the exact same moment that Minato summoned the Shinigami to seal the Kyuubi, Kushina, Hiruzen and his wife all performed the same summoning at the exact same time, each in a different location, but all willing the Kyuubi sealed away.

The Shinigami, amused at this seemingly desperate sacrifice, had several options open to Him. The first was that He could take all four souls and seal the Kyuubi as bid. The second would be that He could instead take a portion of each summoner's soul and replace it by an equal portion of the Kyuubi's, separating and sealing the demon fox's power into five different hosts. The last option, was that He could ignore them and let the humans deal with the Kyuubi without Him.

He was sorely tempted to go with that last option, until He noticed who it was that they wanted Him to seal the Kyuubi into. He decided to consult with His Sisters, the Fates, and upon hearing Their answer, made His own decision. Without taking any bit of the four summoners souls, he consumed the Kyuubi and then allowed the blond human to seal the demon beast's soul and chakra into the seal of the young Kryptonian child that would one day save the world and bring peace to the Elemental Nations.

He did require some payment, however, and he took it in the form of the other two summoners, the Sarutobi's. One year to the day after the Kyuubi attack, they were both taken by the Shinigami. It was a quiet, peaceful death and their last year had been spent in celebration of their lives. The other two, however, were not left without their own form of payments. The woman, flowing red hair and chaotic personality, had her chakra sealed away, never again to perform another ninjutsu, no matter what. She could never be a ninja after that.

The man that had first summoned him, the Hokage, however was given a very fitting payment marker. He was marked by Death Itself, and after several nights of nightmarish dream conversations, Minato Namikaze became the Avatar of Death, the Shinigami made flesh.

It wasn't as bad as it sounded. All it really meant was that Minato could now see and talk to spirits, see when someone was about to die and if they're meant to or not, and maintain the balance between the living and the dead and occasionally be possessed by the Shinigami when He needed a vacation.

For little Naruto, however, he grew up in much the same way as he was meant to, both as Naruto Uzumaki, and Kal'El of Krypton. He grew up knowing the love of his parents and they taught him to love and respect all life and to be a good man and a good ninja. Unfortunately, at the same time, (in order to protect him and Kushina from the Hokage's enemies he was given his mother's maiden name), he was hated and despised by the village because of the few that refused to see a little boy, but the Kyuubi no Kitsune that had attacked their home and was "responsible" for the death of their Hokage, even if the Sarutobi's had died a year after.

As the years passed, some things changed, others stayed the same. The peace treaty with Kumo was a cover for a kidnapping attempt on Hinata Hyuuga, but Minato refused to turn over Hiashi or Hizashi, threatening to 'come out of retirement' by choosing his successor and going to the front lines of the war until he was standing in the Raikage's office with a Rasenshuriken! (He'd had time to perfect and develop several variations of his personal jutsu the Rasengan)

The Uchiha Clan planned a coupe to take over control of Konoha, and the Elders of the Council likewise planned to have them slaughtered by one of their own. Minato was approached by this one and instead of compromising, he told his wife, who did one better. One week after Itachi confessed to the Hokage what his family was planning, all the men were sleeping on the couch, the children were sleeping over at 'friends' houses and Madara Uchiha lost his arm when Minato confronted him the night the Uchiha Massacre was to have happened.

Fugaku Uchiha, father of Itachi and Sasuke, was brought up on charges of sedition and treason, and then let off with a warning. The next morning, every single one of the conspirators was found to have committed 'unaided' seppuku. It was never investigated whether it was true suicide or a cover-up for murder.

The Uchiha Clan lost it's standing as the top-ranked clan in Konoha, but it still existed.

The one thing that really stayed the same was that Sasuke Uchiha was the Rookie of the Year for his graduating class, while Naruto Uzumaki was the Dead Last.


	5. ShaXan Intro

_**ShaXan**_

Title: Ghosts Boasts

Author: Joshua (.)

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon came up with "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and Mutant/Enemy Productions distributes it and has production rites. Shonen Jump owns "Shaman King" and to my knowledge 4KIDS Entertainment is responsible for its distribution in the United States. Please, if any of this information is wrong or in need of correcting, contact me immediately at my e-mail address ( . or ) so I can make the corrections. No disrespect is meant to the writers/owners/originators of these works of fiction, in fact I mean the sincerest form of flattery by writing this fanfiction based upon them. I stand to make no profit from this.

Introduction (prologue):

Operating a wrecking ball crane isn't as difficult as most people think. Especially when you happen to be a professional construction worker. Remembering what Spike had called him earlier; Xander just couldn't let the quip go with such a prime opportunity as he knocked Glory through a wall or two.

"And the glorified bricklayer picks up a spare," he said with very much satisfaction. Seeing Buffy get the Troll hammer back and nothing else that he could do for the moment, he picked up his stuff and went to join the others in the fight against Glory's minions.

Unfortunately that front wasn't doing quite as well as Buffy was.

"How we doin'?" he asked, jumping down from the crane to behind the cover the others were hiding behind. The crazy people and ugly minions were all gathered around the stairs to the haphazardly built tower, their numbers only slightly depleted.

"So far it's a tie," Anya said tiredly.

"We haven't been able to get up to Dawn," Giles told him, slightly out of breath, "but then neither has anyone else."

Almost to his nature, Spike contradicted the Watcher in the next moment, but he certainly didn't sound happy about it. "Someone's up there." They all looked up, and indeed saw a shadow, as well as heard the footsteps whoever it was, was making.

"OK, we gotta charge or something," Xander urged.

"We tried that," Anya pointed out.

The next few minutes were very confusing for Xander. Spike started talking to himself, or so it seemed, and then without warning he took off for the stairs and the moment he did, the crowd in front of the stairs parted faster than the Red Sea did for Moses and the Israelites. The crazy people stayed down, probably knocked unconscious, and Spike climbed the tower as fast as anyone Xander had ever seen move.

With nothing more to do, he and Anya stayed in their barricaded position, while Giles said he would try and find out how Buffy was doing.

"Ask me again," Anya told him suddenly.

Startled, he blurted, "Ask what?" As a reply he only got Anya's "I can't believe you!" stare. Then it came to him and he smiled lovingly at her.

"Will you marry me?" he whispered.

They stared into each other's eyes for the longest time and she quietly nodded her head, whispering back, "Yes," and they leaned into kiss each other.

Then Spike was thrown off the tower.

And right after Buffy had climbed the tower, the sound of paper or cloth ripping echoed through the night, followed by a big, billowy, white energy thunder cloud appeared right below the tower, practically on all of their heads.

Clinging to each other, Xander and Anya watched as bolt after bolt sped from the "cloud", which was quite obviously the portal that Glory had wanted to use to get home, struck out at a part of Sunnydale. Unable to see the effects those bolts were having, they only knew that the earth started to shake and the tower, being so close to the open portal, was starting to break apart on its foundations.

Anya apparently saw it first. It was much smaller than the other bolts that were striking Sunnydale itself, but just before the strike of energy could hit him, Anya pushed Xander clear out of the way, only to be caught in the falling debris from where the bolt actually struck.

Picking himself up, he only saw his fiancé lying still among the pieces of pylon and brick. "Anya!" he cried. Scrambling to all fours, he was by her side and trying to revive her.

The energy cloud kept blasting and causing all sorts of chaos, even as the former Zeppo began to notice the lightening of the sky. He knew that it had only been a couple hours till sunrise by the time they had set out, but he hadn't expected to survive this long. Especially with the portal opening.

And then…it all stopped. And some kind of…wave went through everything as the energy cloud dissipated, and somehow he knew that everything that had been changed just went back to normal. Then he looked up…in time to see a blonde figure fall from the point of the portal to the ground and land with a sickening thud, not very far away.

Xander would idly wonder in the future if it was that particular sound that finally roused Anya from her unconsciousness. "Xan-der?" she grunted, blood seeping from a cut on her head.

Tears already welling in his eyes, Xander nodded and smiled half-heartedly at his fiancé. "It's okay Ahn. She did it. She saved the world. Again. And for the last time."

It was like trying to fly. There was anticipation, but beneath all that and the anxiety, was something in the pit of her stomach. Something that made the whole thing sickening. She was about to die, right? So what if death was her gift. At least she got to die stopping an apocalypse. Not because some two-bit vamp got lucky.

It hurt at first. It was worse than getting electrocuted. Definitely worse than drowning. But as the energy held her, taking what it needed from her to close itself and stop what it had been doing, the darkness started to close in on her, hiding her from the harsh light all around her, and the pain slowly went away.

After that, once the darkness had her fully, all she would ever remember would be the falling. Falling, and falling, and falling… until it stopped.

'SLAM!'

The pain was back, but it wasn't as all consuming. It actually reminded her of the few times she had fallen out of her bed when she was a young child. Groaning, and wondering why she wasn't dead, Buffy tried to push herself up. It was a lot harder than it should have been, and it still hurt too much to open her eyes and see what was going on.

Then she heard the voice.

"Welcome Slayer!"

It was feminine, and now that she realized it, it wasn't the only one.

Buffy's eyes snapped open and her strength came back to her and she rolled herself over into a sitting position. Blinking a few times, Buffy shook her head to clear her vision a little, but what she saw didn't change at all. This was a place that she had seen before. That she knew. And she certainly hadn't expected to see again.

Then again, after she thought about it for a second, it really wasn't that surprising, but she still hadn't expected to find herself here. Although she really should have, since she now is dead, it's only logical that she found herself on the Ghost Roads.

"Welcome Slayer," the same voice said again, causing Buffy to sharply look around until she located the source. "Welcome to the Spirit World."

"Lucy!" Buffy said with relief and recognition as she took the dead Civil War Slayer's, Lucy Hanover, hand and got to her feet.

"That was a close one Summers," the centennial Slayer gave a southern drawl after a brief sisterly hug.

"Close what? What do you mean?" Buffy asked, worried.

Lucy pointed up and Buffy saw something like a red and yellow glowing sun, that for some reason made her think of some kind of yellow with red stripes tiger lady. "What is it?" she asked.

"Who." Lucy corrected. "She tried to get her hands on you when you died, and there's no telling what she would have done with you. But you can be assured that it wouldn't be good."

"Her? You mean god?"

Lucy shook her head no, and guided Buffy along the path they were on, leaving the glowing thing behind. "Well, no, not exactly. She's a goddess, yes, but certainly not **GOD**. Her name is Xiara, and she's one of the ones that call themselves "The Powers That Be". They fashion themselves as all-powerful deities, but they're just power-hungry pretenders with delusions of omnipotence if you ask me."

"We try to keep Slayers from falling into their hands if we can. It always turns out bad for everybody if they ever manage to control a Slayer's soul. Well, everybody on Earth anyway. They always have some kind of sick, twisted "plan" that I guess you could call a cosmic game of chess. You know the whole 'never ending battle' stuff? That's them, playing with humanity and demons like pawns."

"What about things like Glory?" Buffy asked.

Lucy gave her a confused look, so she elaborated, "Hell god." Lucy nodded in understanding.

"She would have been a Rook on the chessboard then. The only thing that would rank a King or Queen slot would be either one of their own or their messengers to directly mess with the rest of humanity." Lucy explained.

"OK, how do you know all this, and how come the real **GOD** allows them to get away with stuff like that?" Buffy wanted to know.

Lucy shrugged. "Gossip," she said simply to the first question. "As to why they're allowed to do it… well, remember that line I once heard you say about what your mother doesn't know won't hurt her?"

"You're kidding!" Buffy exclaimed.

Lucy just shook her head, her expression rather grim, as was the newly dead Slayer's.

Lucy suddenly jerked her head forward at some unheard sound, and she looked worried about something for a second before it suddenly became urgent. "Come on, we need to hurry!" Lucy grabbed Buffy's arm and started to drag her along the Road.

"What's going on? What's the hurry?" Buffy asked, running along as fast as she could. "Where are we going?"

"The Check-In station. They're the reason you're not in Xiara's hands right now. I'm sorry Buffy, but your destiny on Earth isn't over yet," Lucy told her fellow Slayer.

"What?! I'm dead! My destiny is over when I die! Someone else is the Slayer now!" Buffy protested, but kept running alongside Slayer Hanover.

"Faith is the only Slayer alive right now," Lucy told her. "But there is more for your soul, your _spirit_ to do on Earth before you can be reincarnated. Your pretty much the only chance there is for our plan to work."

"Plan? What plan? And weren't you just bad-mouthing all-knowing deities and their plans a few seconds ago?"

"Those plans hurt and toy with humanity. This plan is meant to save it from certain destruction!" Lucy shouted, dragging Buffy to the Check-In station.


	6. Deserted Isle

Title: Desert Island

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: JK Rowling crafted Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and the other only casually mentioned HP-characters of this story. I just took'em and screwed around with them a little bit. *grin* If any type of crossover at all, it would be with "Crusoe", "Lost", "Gilligan's Island", heck even "Survivor". Just any and all of those fictional references that have people stranded on a Caribbean/South Pacific Island that only has vegetation and natural wildlife on it, other than the one or few more humans on it.

Rating: M (for Mature) Contains sex, emotional drama, sex, Adult Language, sex, Adult themes, sex, and Sex.

Summary: AU Post-Deathly Hallows, Pre-Epilogue. In the year after Voldemort's defeat, Harry does some soul searching and tries to find his place in the world. With Hermione, Ginny, and Luna along for the ride, they unfortunately find themselves trapped on a deserted island where their magic will not work, and they must rely on each other in order to survive. With no hope of rescue, they etch out a new existence for themselves.

AN: My first ever 'Harry-Harem shipper' HP-fanfic. _4 In 1_ is an Action/Adventure fanfic, this is Romance/Sex.

AN2: Few things are different from the books, but for the most part everything else happened as it happened in canon. What is different; Ron and Hermione had a Love/Hate relationship going on, but popular opinion states that Ron is a dickhead, so in this AU, he never broke up with Lavender Brown. In fact, during the last few months, when Harry and Ginny started dating and Ron and Hermione _would have_ started dating, he and Lavender were doing IT every night and she was pregnant before Summer. Weasley men are very potent.

Weasley women are eternally horny and don't mind being pregnant, and Ginny remained passionately loyal to Harry after the moment he said 'Go', so to speak. After the summer wedding, Ginny did not date at Hogwarts, instead focusing on her studies. Luna fell in love with Harry when he, Hermione and Ron rescued her from Malfoy mansion, and after recovering started pestering Ginny for hints. Hermione fell in love with Harry during their months alone without Ron, but never said anything until much later. Malfoy and his parents were killed by "Friendly Fire" in the Final Battle, nuff said. Teddy Lupin lives with his grandmother, Harry visits. Visited.

AN3: One final major difference, that Rowling said didn't happen; Harry went back to Hogwarts to complete his Seventh Year alongside Hermione and graduated alongside Hermione, Ginny, and Luna as the Head Boy, despite protesting that he deserved it. He found he had a talent for both Charms and Transfiguration, and studied Beginning Arithmency and Ancient Runes, just to have stuff to talk about with his Girls. Ron didn't go.

AN4: This story begins roughly one month after Harry, Hermione, Ginny, and Luna graduated Hogwarts.

Story:

"Uggghhhhhh..." he groaned, feeling heat on his back and itchy uncomfortable warmth beneath him. He felt a sharp jolt of cold, part of what had initially roused him from unconsciousness, touch his feet in a rush of liquid coolness. Then it went away and the overbearing heat was back.

Opening his eyes, slowly, then squinting them shut against the too-bright glare of sunlight, he began to suspect that something was not right. The water lapped at his heels again and he squinted his eyes again, more cautiously this time. He saw sand. White sand. Lots and lots of white sand. And the ocean.

He closed his eyes again and focused on breathing steadily. Thirty seconds later, he opened them again, and saw the same thing. Groaning with the effort, he slowly picked himself up, crawling up to his hands and knees and tried to get a better look at his surroundings.

None too surprising, he saw he was on a beach. Exactly where or what beach, he couldn't begin to say, but given how high the sun was getting in the sky and how hot it already was, he'd say it was a lot closer to the Equator than the British Isles.

"What the bloody hell happened?" he asked aloud, receiving no reply.

Gathering his strength, he slowly got to his feet and took a better look around. Looking down at himself, he saw that his clothes were soaked and covered in sand, seaweed and dried salt from the seawater. Shrugging off his outer robes, he walked up the beach to the tree line where palm and other tropical trees grew and tossed the black clothes onto the lower trees. He took off his outer shirt, leaving himself in just his t-shirt, pants and shoes. Despite still being soaked, he was already beginning to sweat from the heat.

"Harry!" a voice suddenly called out.

Turning, the dark-haired green-eyed man looked up and down the beach until he saw a figure off in the distance, running towards him. "Harry!" she called out again, waving her hand high above her head. He looked again and saw a young woman, about 19 years old with bushy brown hair, white skin, brown eyes, and was wearing heavy black robes.

"Hermione!" Harry Potter cried. "What are you doing here? What are we doing here? Where is here for that matter? And _what_ happened?"

Hermione Granger ran up and embraced her longtime friend, just as soaked, if a little bit more dried out as he was, laughing and crying and most of all feeling relieved. Harry just let her hold him for a few minutes more, having experience with this kind of behavior from his friend. Finally, once she had composed herself, Hermione stepped back and smiled through the tears at her friend.

"Oh Harry, I'm so glad to see you, I thought I was all alone! It's been absolutely dreadful!"

"It's OK, Hermione," he assured her with a warm smile. "Now that we're all calm and everything, how about putting that brain of yours to good use and..." Harry trailed off as he caught sight of something out of the corner of his eye. Taking a second look, he focused more intently on it.

"Harry?" Hermione asked, suddenly concerned.

"There!" he shouted, pointing about twenty yards down the beach and taking off at a run, Hermione following after as fast as she could with heels in the sand.

By the time they got there, they had both identified that it was another body washed up on the beach. This one was also female, wearing heavy black robes, but she also clutched a transparent glittery cloak in one of her hands, and had long red hair.

"Ginny!" Harry and Hermione shouted.

He quickly pulled her out of the surf and further up onto the beach, Hermione helping where she could. Thankfully, young Ginny Weasley was still breathing and very much alive. Due mostly to their shouting, she immediately regained consciousness and shared in the same disorientation of not knowing where they were or what was going on.

"Whu... what... what happened?" she finally asked, when she'd gained enough strength to do so.

"Good question," Harry looked back up at Hermione, not to blame, but hoping for answers.

"Well... the last thing I can clearly remember is being on the boat... It had been arranged by the Patils, the Hogwarts Battle Reunion! On a cruise ship, touring the Channel and going down the coast for the weekend. There was a party, and after it was over we all went for a walk on the rear deck. Then..."

"There was an attack," Harry finished for her. "Right as we were about to head back in... There was spell fire, and I remember seeing... Death Eaters! Death Eaters Apparated directly onto the ship!"

"No, it was only a small group," Ginny was sitting up by now. "There were muggles around, so everyone was thinking it was some kind of terrorist attack or pirates and everyone was panicking. We tried to fight back, but..."

"They overpowered us on the Bridge. We had to run... Ron and Lavender!" Hermione exclaimed, remembering.

"We got away but by then..." Ginny trailed off.

"There was an explosion, and I grabbed both of you. Both of you and..." Harry's eyes went wide.

"Then Harry performed a mass-Side-Along-Apparition," a light voice said from the tree line.

All three turned and stared. Standing there, her long golden blond hair undone and flowing free, was Luna Lovegood. She had apparently woken first and already followed Harry's example by removing the heavy outer robes and other offending garments in the heat. What really made them all stare was that this left her in nothing but a silky see-through white shift, which was still somewhat wet, and her panties. Apparently Luna's B-cup breasts didn't really require her to wear a bra for the evening, although she certainly didn't seem to mind at the moment.

"Luna!" Hermione exclaimed, "You're here too?"

"Yeah," Harry nodded, answering in the blond's stead. "That's right, I grabbed all three of you and Disapparated us to our room on the boat. I... I remember grabbing all of you and pulling you under my Invisibility Cloak. Then when they found us and the spells started to fly again... I just... reacted."

"It was most certainly an interesting reaction, Harry," Luna commented, helping them all to their feet, then leading them back up the beach to the tree line. "You transported yourself and three other people over five thousand miles away, if not even further by my estimation."

"You know where we are?" Hermione asked, sounding desperate and thankful all at once.

"Haven't the foggiest," the silvery-eyed blond replied straightforward.

"Nevertheless, the clues point themselves out to the obvious," she pointed to the very high angle at which the sun hung in the sky, then the horizon, which only held the island and an endless expanse of water with no sign of land or ships in sight, then finally at the trees. "We are on a tropical or sub-tropical island somewhere in the Mediterranean, Aegean, or Caribbean seas, and more than likely on an island that is some distance from the nearest landmass, though probably closer to Europe than the Americas."

"And what leads you to that conclusion?" Hermione huffed.

"The sun," Harry and Luna said together, both pointing at the sky, before continuing, "The plants. And no sign of land or ship."

"How does that work exactly?" Ginny asked before Hermione could explode.

"Shall I?" Harry asked Luna. She bowed her head and replied, "Please."

"The sun is only ever _directly_ above your head around the equator, hence the tropic or sub-tropic region. The plants are palm trees, which can only be found in the tropics or in very warm weather. However, only coconut, banana, and melon trees grow near the aforementioned seas. If we saw dates, or other fruits, we would probably be in the Mediterranean, but I only see coconut, some bananas, and a melon tree further in," he pointed into the foliage, where a tree bearing round melons near it's top could be seen.

"Oh," Hermione blushed a bright pink.

"We need to get out of the sun," Harry commented, reminding himself about the damage of sunburns. It wasn't normally a problem in England, unless you're 6 years old and your Aunt makes you work out in the garden for hours and hours a day and wind up getting 2nd degree burns that she didn't even give a salve for.

"What I don't understand," Hermione was saying as they trekked through the forest in search of shelter, "is how we ended up here in the first place. Even if Harry Apparated us all away to safety, and no offense Harry, even if he didn't have a clear destination in mind, we shouldn't have gone much further than a few hundred miles! Not to mention the danger of splinching!"

Harry winced, ready to about kill himself for taking the risk with his friends.

"We didn't land here, Hermione," Luna calmly replied. "We landed some hundred or so miles out to sea from this place. It was just lucky for us that we came ashore when we did, otherwise we might never have survived."

"I don't remember swimming," Harry commented.

"Neither do I," Ginny added.

"I can't really explain it," Luna shrugged, "I just know that I woke up about half an hour ago a quarter of a mile down the beach. My clothes were soaked, and each of us were placed along the beach that would make sense if we washed in with the tide. Perhaps the Nereids took pity on us and saved us. They do that you know, saving people that fall into their seas and taking them ashore to deserted islands. They're not allowed to go near the continents anymore. Too much pollution."

Hermione opened her mouth, about to protest the existence of Nereids, then caught herself and firmly closed her mouth. For the past year, since being in many of the same classes with Luna at Hogwarts, she'd come to accept the girl was an eccentric, and arguing over it just had them going around and around in circles, so she'd finally made a resolution to not bother with it anymore.

"Any idea where we're going?" Ginny asked, after five minutes of walking.

"Just keep an eye out for some place to use as shelter," Harry told them, keeping his voice strong and confident. If nothing else that he'd learned from the past eight years, it was that people only listened to you when _you_ were the one that was calm and confident in the midst of a crisis.

"It's so hot!" Hermione whined, Ginny agreeing without as many words.

"Well, take off your robes," Harry admonished them.

They stopped walking and stared at the only male in sight. Luna giggled and turned to look and see how Harry would handle this situation.

"Excuse me?" Hermione enunciated.

"Look at me and Luna," he said. "We took off our _robes_, not all of our clothes. And I sincerely doubt that you and Ginny would be the kind of people to wear nothing but your outer robes, especially since I remember seeing you both in very nice dresses at the party on the boat. Just take off what you don't need and do your best to stay cool."

"Well, why don't I just..." Hermione stopped speaking for a second. "Where's my wand?"

"Check the Invisibility Cloak," Luna suggested.

"What? Why?" Hermione questioned.

"Ginny," Harry held out his hand and took the silvery material that had been in Ginny's hands ever since they found her on the beach. He unfurled the Invisibility cloak and began to search through the folds until he found two different wands. Examining the both of them, he sighed and pocketed the darker one, then handed the other back to Ginny.

"Well where's my wand?" Hermione screeched.

"Where did you put it?" Luna innocently asked.

"What kind of question is that?" the brunette huffed and crossed her arms.

"I think it means," Harry tolerantly reiterated, "where do you last remember putting your wand? I put mine in my wrist-sheath, and it was still there when I woke up. See?" he pulled his holly wand out of his pocket where he'd put it after stripping down earlier. "So, before we had to basically jump off a boat full of people trying to kill us, where did you have your wand?"

Hermione thought it over, and then her eyes went wide in revelation and her hands went to her waist, but not any of the pockets. Then she seemed to remember where she was and blushed as she looked around. "Uh," she hesitated, "I think I'll go over there behind those bushes and change."

As she scurried off, Ginny and Luna rolled their eyes, while Harry mused aloud, "I'm not sure if it's amazing or just plain weird that she couldn't remember where her wand was, given where it's been for the past day or so."

The blond and redhead turned and looked surprised.

"What?" Harry shrugged. They decided not to ask.

"So, Ginerva, will you also be changing your clothing?" Luna asked.

Blushing to match her hair color, Ginny briefly considered joining Hermione behind the bushes, but one look at Harry's muscular torso and she saw an opportunity to take advantage of here. Smiling saucily, she began to delicately remove her black robes and other assorted jewelry and other hangups, twisting to show her feminine curves with each move. And she didn't stop with her outer robe either, taking Luna up on her silent challenge and began to do the same with her silk dress and the more cumbersome undergarments.

Finally, after roughly six minutes of an up close and personal striptease, Ginny stood with Harry and Luna in her black thong panties and strapless black silk basque that pushed up her cleavage and ended a few inches above her navel, leaving much of her belly bare. Of course considering the garter, stockings, slip and camisole she'd been wearing under her dress, this was as dressed down as it got without going naked.

Clearing his throat and hoping his voice didn't squeak, Harry finally garnered enough free will to look away from the enticing redhead and called back to Hermione in the bushes. "Hermione? You doing all right in there? Need me to come in and help you with something?"

Ginny slapped him playfully on the arm and he just grinned back at her, unrepentant.

"Uh, no, that-that's all right, Harry," Hermione called back.

"Really it's no trouble, and Ginny's already finished stripping, er I mean taking off her robes!" he teased.

Ginny was about to slap him again, when Hermione finally stepped out of the bushes, dressed in a rather revealing floral-print bikini with matching sarong wrap around her waist with her shoes apparently having been transfigured into sandals. That's what they thought, until they remembered seeing Hermione in this exact same outfit on the boat at poolside.

"Where did you...?" Harry started to ask.

In response, Hermione merely pulled out an all-too-familiar handbag that had Harry groaning in relief and disbelief. "I can't believe you still have that!" he stated.

"Well, it certainly came in handy, didn't it? Besides, I figured that we would be needing our things, no matter what, so I grabbed all of our things shoved them and a few other necessities in my bag and then shrunk it down and put it... someplace where I wouldn't lose it. I believe I have both of yours swimsuits that is unless you'd prefer walking around some tropical jungle in your underwear?" she looked at Luna and Ginny.

The blond and redhead looked at each other, then shrugged and replied together, "I don't have a problem with it." They both giggled at the look on Hermione's face, and Harry didn't feel like getting dragged into the argument, so he slipped away and started looking for some shelter.

"Although, if my shoes or sandals are in there, I think I would appreciate that more than heels," Ginny compromised, holding up the offending footwear. Hermione sighed and spent a minute looking before pulling out the requested items and put the heels and other articles of clothing in their place. Luna was quite comfortable barefoot, or so she said, and did not bother.

When they finally caught up to Harry, he was a short distance away in a large clearing of the jungle. Besides there being no trees, there seemed to be some large rocks to one side, from which a clean water spring originated and flowed via a small stream into a a surprisingly deep freshwater pond. There was also a very large tree that was three times the vertical height of the Whomping Willow at Hogwarts. There were lots of thick sturdy branches, reminding Harry of the time when he was nine years old and Dudley wanted a treehouse. There weren't exactly a lot of trees in Little Whinging, but there was this one old magnolia tree. To make a long story short, Harry, thanks to both Dudley and Vernon's aversion to physical labor that was not a part of bullying, had quite a time trying to make a treehouse that would support Dudley and all his friends monstrous weight. The fact that he had succeeded had little meaning as in the end the fat pig wouldn't go near it because 'the freak was up there!' and so Harry had to tear it down as Vernon and Petunia denied him everything while giving Dudley everything he desired and more.

Nevertheless, Harry was confident that he could have them a very decent shelter built in no time at all. Especially with a little bit of magic.

"This should work perfectly," he announced to the girls.

"How so?" Hermione questioned. "There's no shelter of any kind here, in fact it's a clearing, there are hardly even any trees to take shelter under if it starts raining!"

"Oh Hermione, so naïve," Luna teased the brunette.

"_Excuse_ me?" Hermione bristled.

"If it starts to rain, it will be because there is a tropical storm hitting the island. We're not in England anymore, where it can rain just because," Luna reminded her. "Also, Harry seems intent on building us our shelter, and you seem to be forgetting that despite our lack of robes at this time, we are three witches and a wizard with wands. Two wands in Harry's case."

"Oh," Hermione blushed bright red.

"Anyway," Harry chuckled as he took out his normal wand and waved it at one of the nearby trees, "let's just decide on what we want our... huh?" Harry frowned as he concentrated and waved his wand again. Then again, saying the incantation aloud for the cutting curse. Then he jerked his wand forcefully and shouted the words. By this point, even the girls were concerned.

"What the hell?" Harry grunted, then switched his normal wand for the black one Ginny had pulled from the Invisibility Cloak. Same results.

"OK, now I know something is wrong here," Harry pronounced, staring in fear at the Elder Wand in his hands. "There's enough magic in this wand that, if they succeeded in becoming it's master like I am, a _muggle_ with no magic whatsoever could cast a powerful spell with it! If _this thing_ isn't working, then it's not me but something else entirely."

"Oh dear," Luna whispered, while Hermione and Ginny were both still processing their shock.

"Ginny, Luna, Hermione, try a spell, any spell," Harry ordered.

Immediately both blond and redhead pulled out their wands and cast the simple levitation charm. Then they tried the first thing ever taught at Hogwarts, shooting sparks out of your wand. Then they each tried their own unique spells, ones that were the strongest that both of them knew and required a great deal of magic to work, and could usually overpower any kind of inhibitor or even dueling shield. The results were the same all around; nothing.

Hermione was still in shock, but by the time Ginny and Luna had started trying their stronger spells, she'd snapped out of it and finally pulled out her own wand and followed their example. Only to fall into despair as she had the exact same results of nothing at all happening. They might as well have just picked up sticks off the ground and been waving them around for all that it was doing.

"I don't understand!" Hermione screeched, getting progressively more frantic with each failed spell. "I've never heard of anything like this! There are curses that sometimes make it impossible for a specific spell to be cast, or if the witch or wizard is low on energy, but there's never been anything that stopped all magic from working at all!"

"Magic hasn't stopped working, Hermione," Harry quickly moved to comfort the distraught witch. "Look at your purse. Look at the Invisibility Cloak. Both are magical items, and they're both working just fine. It's just... it looks like there's some kind of ward or dampening field that doesn't allow active spells to be cast for some reason. All we have to do is find the primary rune stone powering the ward and disable it so we can use our magic and we'll be fine. All right?"

Sniffling, Hermione just pulled Harry closer and replied, "All right."

"In the mean time," Luna interrupted their embrace after a few minutes, "it is clear that we're going to need temporary shelter until Harry finishes our primary shelter by hand, that is if he still wants to build our shelter anymore."

"Oh, you can count on that," Harry said with a gleam in his eyes. "But you're right. For right now, unless there's a storm on the way, why don't you three spend the day on the beach. And Ginny... much as I love seeing you and Luna prance about in your lingerie, I think it would be best if all three of you changed into more... appropriate attire. We're in the wilderness here, and until we find that rune stone, our magic to repair our clothing isn't going to work either."

The girls all nodded and were about to move off, when Harry called to Hermione.

"Hermione, can I get the sword from your purse. If you really grabbed everything, that should definitely be in there then," he requested. She nodded and pulled out her purse and dug around for a minute before smiling and pulling out a 3 ½ foot English short sword and handed it over to him.

Smiling, Harry hefted the weapon and nodded to the girls before walking back over to the tree he'd tried to cut down earlier. Holding the sword with both hands, Harry spent half a minute just breathing and settling into a unique stance. After a full minute, his eyes snapped open with blazing inner strength and he blurred forward, the sword flashing out and slicing through the trunk of the tree like a hot knife through butter. The tree fell seconds later.

"Well, that proves it then," Harry announced to the watching witches. "Only external magic and spells are affected by whatever it is. Internal magic and enchantments are not affected. Hermione, you might want to read up on your rune magic."

Realizing what he meant, Hermione sighed and nodded, leading the way back to the beach while Harry continued chopping trees until he had enough to begin with a basic shelter. Along the way, she pulled out a book from her purse. It was her Ancient Runes textbook from Hogwarts, bought with her own money so she didn't have to leave it at school or anything like that. Thankfully, with runes it was possible to carve them on a piece of wood, stone, or even bone and then infuse them with magic, thereby producing a magical effect. It would seem something on the island was preventing their wands from working, but at the same time internal magic still worked, so theoretically runes would also still work. Best to study up first though.

"OK, reality check time," Ginny said as soon as the three of them reached the beach. "We've been marooned on what appears to be a deserted island, one where our magic doesn't work, the last thing any of us remember is escaping from a Death Eater attack on our reunion party and again the only people on this island are the three of us, and Harry Potter."

"Three witches that have individually been saved by Harry Potter at least once in their lives together," Luna added. "Life Debts that he has never lorded over us nor called in. We are also all friends."

"And we all are in love with Harry Potter," Hermione finished for them, closing her book.

They just stood there on the beach, each in their rather revealing swim wear, staring at each other for a minute. The tension seemed to mount unexpectedly and remained rather high until Hermione said, "I suppose it's rather a good thing that our magic doesn't work right now then."

"And that the... tricks Harry picked up in using magic to enhance his physical traits can only be used by him in the first place," Ginny added.

"There are no nargles here," Luna stated.

The other two witches turned their glares on her, wondering what the heck she was blabbering about now, only to see that she was actually looking around at the jungle forest with a concerned look on her face. "There are no sneeches, or snorkacks or snoos. No nerd nor nerkle nor who. Not even the Lorax, the Grimp, nor the P.U. to be found."

"Luna... what are you talking about?" Hermione finally asked.

Luna stared at the bushy-haired brunette with unnerving intensity right then. "There are no imaginary creatures on this island, Hermione. At all. None. Even the ones that I see around you and myself all the time... gone. I... I... I... can't do this anymore!"

Hermione and Ginny jumped back at Luna's shout.

"FINE! You two want to fight over Harry, be my guest!" she screamed at them, practically going into hysterics. "But I will not have two of my best friends involve me in some _petty_ struggle to get the man I love to choose only them! Don't you see?! WE'RE ALL ALONE OUT HERE!"

She waved her arms up at the sky and her echoing shout did not bounce back.

Ginny sighed and lowered her head. "Luna's right. If we can't depend on each other, we're not going to survive," she said, playing the realist. "Look, here's the deal. I've been in love with Harry Potter the 'Boy-Who-Lived' for practically my whole life, but my first year at Hogwarts broke the illusion pretty clearly for me, what with me being mind-raped by Voldemort's horcrux and made to do horrible things that _still_ give me nightmares. Over the next six years after that, I saw how the real Harry Potter was... and I fell in love with him. When we started dating in my fifth year, it was the absolute best time in my life, and when he broke up with me it damn near broke my heart."

She took a moment to catch her breath before continuing. "Our last year at Hogwarts, when you and Harry actually came _back_ to finish your 7th Year, Hermione... I half expected us to pick up where we left off, with me and Harry being Hogwarts Perfect Couple, and the other half expected the break-up to stand and he would start seeing other people. As we all know, neither happened."

"He was still getting over the loss," Hermione told them. "All those people that died. Remus, Tonks, George... He... _we_ just needed something to focus on besides those that we lost."

"Your parents were killed in a boating accident," Luna reminded them. "Ginny's brothers were killed in the war. My mother was killed right in front of my eyes by a booby-trapped enchanted box. Harry's parents were killed in front of him when he was only one year old, and then he was sent to live in hell until he came to Hogwarts and had to survive a whole different kind of hell."

"We've lost enough," Ginny snapped. "Enough time, enough people, enough opportunities. You two want Harry? As a lover? Boyfriend? Husband? Father?"

At each question, both blond and brunette nodded their heads yes.

"Well, so do I. And I'm not about to stop you two from getting what you want anymore than I'll let you stop me from getting what I want," the redhead heatedly remarked. "So rather than just say, 'Let's share!' and work out the details later... I want to help you two get what you want and I want you to help me get what I want. Sharing be damned, I want the whole thing."

"Do you realize what you are proposing, Ginny?" Luna asked, her eyes unnervingly intent again.

Rather than answer with words, the youngest Weasley proved that she knew exactly what she was proposing with action, grabbing the blond by the back of the neck and pulling her in for a violent and passionate kiss right there. They let go after almost a full minute of intense lip action, out of breath and pupils dilated. The freckled redhead wasn't through yet though, grabbing the stunned brunette the same way and repeating the action with a whole new flavor.

Another minute later and Hermione had a very confused look on her very flushed and aroused face, until Luna grabbed said face with both hands and pulled her in for another heated kiss. _Two_ minutes later, all three witches were out of breath, flushed, had swollen lips and were all incredibly horny.

"I believe that's a yes," Ginny finally answered Luna's question.

"I'm in," Hermione moaned, barely able to think straight, let alone stand up without wobbling.

"Me too," Luna agreed.

"New island policy," the blond decided on a whim, "unless required to, due to weather or other environmental danger, or to further entice Harry with provocative packaging, clothing is non-optional."

"Don't you mean clothing-optional?" Hermione corrected.

"No," Luna smirked as she pulled down her only article of covering, revealing her pert coral-colored nipples, "Clothing is non-optional. Meaning nobody except Harry or his seducers are allowed to wear anything, unless it's for protection."

Ginny and Hermione shared a look at each other, smirked and immediately followed Luna's example in unofficially declaring the status of the nude beach they ally now stood upon. A quick rummage through the bag and they were laid out on two beach towels, sans clothing. While Hermione researched runes and warding, Ginny and Luna decided to... "entertain themselves" which was made even more interesting by the lack of clothing. Hermione only lasted ten minutes before 'reluctantly' joining in.

TBC...?


	7. YAHF Gotta Catch'em ALL!

**Poke'Buffy**

Title: A Pokemon/Buffy Crossover

Author: Joshua "The Evil Guy"

Disclaimer: BtVS was conceived by Joss Whedon and distributed by Mutant/Enemy Productions. Pokemon, including the creatures and characters of the TV show, are owned by Nintendo and distributed in America by 4Kids Entertainment.

Summary: What the heck do you THINK it's about? ;

AN: I said I was going to do it! :D

Poke'Dex: N/A

Pikachu: The Electric Mouse Pokemon. Pikachu is capable of generating over 10,000 volts of electricity and during stormy weather more than 10,000 Megavolts. Evolved form of Pichu.

Togepei: The Egg Pokemon. Togepei has the unique ability to spread good cheer and ease tensions. Not much is known about its abilities.

Story:

"I can't believe you /_actually/_ volunteered for this Buffy," Xander commented for the fifth time that afternoon.

The blonde protector of humanity known as Buffy the Vampire Slayer just shrugged and grinned at her friend. "Honestly guys, I didn't think that Snyder would draft you like that. But it is so worth it after seeing the look on Snyder's face when I showed him I had already volunteered for the Trick or Treat program."

"Yeah, even I have to admit, that was cool," Willow agreed.

They were all at the new costume shop, "Ethan's", looking for costumes to wear for when they would be escorting a lot of costumed kids around town for Trick or Treating. Xander, who had been planning to dress up purely for the novelty factor beforehand, was much disappointed when his costume idea for a soldier fell through when the fatigues he had searched for all afternoon had mysteriously disappeared, before he found out his mother had donated the box they had been in to the Salvation Army.

Buffy, almost as soon as she was in the store, had noticed a beautiful medieval style noble woman's dress, which was pretty, but she didn't really have any reason to spend money on something like that. Besides, there were so many other, much cooler costume selection.

Most of it, unfortunately, were demon costumes, and ever since the Nightmare made real adventure, where Buffy had been turned into a vampire, not a real one thankfully, but she was definitely not going to invest in anything even remotely demonic.

"Hey guys," Willow suddenly bounced in front of them, holding a packaged costume, "Ya gotta love the classics!" She was holding a ghost costume, with a 'Boo!' printed on the front.

"Willow, Willow, Willow," Xander 'tsked', "You're missing the whole point of Halloween."

"Free candy?" she offered a guess.

"No, it's getting to dress up, be somebody you aren't," Buffy picked up the argument while taking the ghost costume out of Willow's hands, "It's come as you _/aren't/_ night, and if I have to beat you bloody and dress you up myself, we're going to dress you up for Halloween as the most un-Willow-like thing we can imagine."

Gulping, Willow's brain spoke before her mouth could shut itself, "A, uh, a frog?"

"No," Buffy scrunched her face up in confusion, then remembered Willow was actually afraid of frogs.

"Hey guys, check this out," Xander called them over to a section that was right in between the Adult costumes, and the kiddie costume, which was where most of the crowd was.

"What's up Xan?" Buffy asked as she dragged Willow over, making sure she left the ghost costume behind.

"You ever watch Saturday morning cartoons?" he asked, sounding very serious as he eyed several items on a shelf before them.

"Yeah, just cause I'm the Slayer doesn't mean I'm not still a teenager," Buffy guffawed at him.

"Ever watch Pokémon," he pointed at the plastic toy "Pokéballs" which just happened to be next to several black, brown, and red haired wigs, as well as a familiar red and white hat. The actual costumes however were much too small for the nearly adult teens.

"Uh-uh, no way, not gonna happen Xander, I absolutely refuse," Buffy made her voice sound very firm. Even though, thanks mostly to her sister, she had seen all the movies so far and could actually name a large number of the nearly 400 species of Pokemon.

"Oh good, that means I can go and get the ghost costume . . ." Willow started to walk away, when Buffy grabbed her by the collar, keeping her from going anywhere, the blonde's eyes never leaving Xander, and his proposition.

"Only if Willow goes as Misty," she said with finality.

Xander's grin almost outshone the sun, until Buffy continued, this time with an evil grin, "And you go as either Brock or Tracy."

Grumbling, Xander challenged, "So who will you be going as? Nurse Joy? Officer Jenny?" One, if they had ears, could hear the anticipation in Xander's voice.

"Are you kidding me?" Buffy snorted and rolled her eyes while grabbing several key items, namely a dozen and a half of the Pokéballs, thankfully they were going at 50¢ a piece, a PokéDex, the red and white hat, and a black, boyishly short wig. "I'm going as the star of the show. The one time my height deficiency comes in handy. Here are your PokéBalls. Oh, and Willow, Dawn has a Togepi doll that I don't think she'll mind you borrowing for the night."

"Uh, Buff, hate to break this to you, but Ash Ketchum is a guy," the teen reminded her, even as he was taking a green vest off the rack along with some convenient packs that matched exactly with the ones on the show. Together with the items Buffy had gotten the total would come to around $25. Well within their combined price range.

"Do I have to repeat myself about how this is come as you /aren't/ night?" Buffy growled.

"No," Xander said carefully, but still skeptical about this. "But if we're going for authenticity, shouldn't you grab a Pikachu doll too? Really, I don't mind going as Brock, he's at least smart and patient, and . . ."

That did it. Now Buffy was going to do this all just to spite Xander, and to get Willow in 'Misty' attire, which was as far from 'Willow' attire as Buffy could imagine.

"All right, fine!" Buffy snapped at her friend, "I'll prove exactly how wrong you are Mister /_Brock is the best_/! Besides, there's the party at the Bronze with a prize for the best costume, and just to prove to you how much I'm going to do this, I'm going to win that prize! And Willow and you are coming with me!"

"Ooookay," Xander looked at Willow who shrugged, not to clear on what Buffy was talking about either.

"OK. It's settled then," Buffy announced as she in quick order paid for all of their purchases and lead them out of the shop.

"Uh, what's settled?" Willow dared to ask as they walked along.

"I'm going as Ash Ketchum, Xander is going as Brock, and Willow is going as Misty," Buffy announced cheerfully as they walked along.

Xander and Willow shared one last, /_'We're in trouble'_/ look, as they followed Buffy.

End Part 1

The next afternoon, found Willow over at Buffy's house, getting ready for the Trick or Treating that night. /_'Why oh why didn't I go back for that ghost costume?'_/ Willow asked herself silently as she stared at herself in Buffy's full mirror.

She was wearing a very small, in her opinion, yellow tank top that hugged her older-than-13 curves as well as left her midriff completely bare, and a pair of short short shorts that Buffy had loaned her, and while her best female friend was decidedly more female and curvy than Willow herself was, the shorts were particularly tight on her slightly wider hips and waist. Red suspenders, which Willow had brought with her out of her father's drawer at home, were hooked to the shorts that didn't need them at all to be perfectly honest. And then she wore sneakers and socks. And that was it.

Well, of course she had on underwear, she wasn't stupid. She just didn't want people to /_see_/ her underwear. Or what wasn't currently covered by her clothing. Why hadn't she gone back for that safe, comfortable full body sheet ghost costume?

Helplessly, Willow tried to pull the yellow shirt down further, as far as she could pull it. Didn't matter. Even pulling it and stretching it as far as it could go, it did not even reach half way to her navel. Whimpering, Willow just put her arms over her midriff, trying to hide her pale, smooth skin. And she had /_never_/ worn shorts this short, or tight, before! Good thing she had been shaving every day since the day her mother had first taught her. The one time Sheila Rosenberg was not absent was during Willow's twelfth and thirteenth years of life.

Willow absently wondered, if because of her mother's strict, yet present guidance during those years of change had made her somewhat repressed.

One look at the cowering, yet undeniably beautiful girl in the mirror tended to answer the question with a yes.

"Hey, so, what do you think?" Buffy's voice came from behind her.

Still with her arms trying to cover herself, she turned to look, and her eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets. If it weren't for Buffy being 16 instead of 10, and the now extremely subtle clues that she was female, she looked /_exactly_/ like a real life version of Ash Ketchum, the hero of the Pokemon cartoon.

"Wow," Willow whispered in awe, unconsciously dropping her arms as she stared in disbelief. Buffy had on a dark haired wig, which was barely being held in check by the red and white hat from the shop, but somehow, in a way Willow couldn't tell or understand, made the wig look like it was Buffy's natural hair, growing straight out of her head.

"Wow yourself," Buffy whistled at Willow in her 'Misty' costume.

Turning red, practically all over, Willow's arms immediately went back around her waist, wishing she had something to cover up with, even though only Buffy was seeing her. As she did, she took in the rest of Buffy's costume. A black t-shirt with a small blue jacket, with white short-sleeves, over it. Regular, but still form-fitting, one of the subtle things revealing Buffy's true identity, blue jeans and sneakers. On the bed beside them was the green and red packs Xander had grabbed from the shop, the green one for Buffy, the red sack-like pack for Willow.

"Oh, hey, almost forgot," Buffy quickly disappeared down the hall a moment before reappearing, carrying two stuffed dolls with her. "My sister is like a total Pokémon fanatic. She has at least two of these, so I'm taking the one I know she won't miss," holding up a yellow and orange stuffed animal. It had two pointed ears, with black fur on the tips, as well as a wide expression-filled face with black jewels as eyes, two big orange colored cheeks, which matched the orange stripes on it's back, and it's lightning jagged edge tail, also tipped in black fur. It had four feet, and was as cute as any stuffed animal could be. The Pikachu doll was in pristine condition, as far as Willow could tell.

"The other Pikachu doll is like the first one she ever got, and it's kinda ratty, but I know she would never forgive me if I took that one, so I'll just take the nicer one," Buffy said with a bright, 'got-the-best-of-sister' smile.

"Oh, and can't forget Togepi," Buffy handed Willow the other, white, blue and red egg-shaped doll.

Willow almost smiled as she took the doll, for once forgetting that she was practically half-naked. But only for a moment.

"Now, quick, before Xander gets here, let's do your hair," Buffy said as she quietly forced Willow to sit down in front of her bureau.

"Couldn't I just wear a wig, like you are?" Willow begged.

"No. And why would you besides? You've already got red hair, now we've just got to style it in that on-the-side ponytail thing. And Xander's not wearing a wig," she pointed out as she began brushing Willow's long auburn hair.

"Xander is going as Brock," Willow pointed out with a pout, still trying to cover herself up, "and on top of that, he doesn't have to have anime hair to pull it off! Couldn't I just leave my hair down and tell people I'm Misty on a bad hair day? And come to think of it, I wouldn't mind being Nurse Joy even. At least she gets a whole dress."

Buffy stopped and looked at Willow in the mirror.

"Wills, stop it," she snapped. "You are a beautiful young lady and you have nothing, I repeat /_nothing_/ to be ashamed about. Hey, you got it, flaunt it, I always say. Actually, come to think of it, Cordelia always says that, doesn't she? Ah well, good advice in this case. Besides, imagine Cordy's face when she checks out the hotness that is Willow Rosenberg tonight."

Willow's eyes went wide and she paled several degrees further. Buffy leaned down and whispered into the natural redhead's ear, "Don't worry about it. You are beautiful, and you're going to be the fiery-tempered Misty of the Cereulean Gym for tonight at least. Start acting like it. This is going to be fun. I promise."

Willow, detecting the earnestness in Buffy's voice, actually relaxed a little, but didn't say anything further as Buffy worked her hair, almost expertly as she watched, into a very close, albeit /_real_/ approximation of the character's hairstyle.

"There, all done," Buffy announced. A moment later, the front doorbell rang. "And just in time too. C'mon. Dawn's probably already gotten the door and is now drooling over her major crush looking actually decent. Although orange and green, what kind of color scheme is that really?"

"Buffy?" Willow called.

"Yeah?" the Slayer turned to look at her friend.

"I'm not the only one that needs to get into character," she glumly announced, causing 'Ash' to falter for a bit, obviously thinking it over.

When Willow saw the broad grin on her friend's face however, she immediately regretted saying anything at all.

"Gosh! You're right! C'mon /_Misty_/, let's go!" the young lady shouted over-exuberantly, tugging Willow along helplessly.

/_'Why didn't I get that ghost costume?!'_/ she mentally shouted a final time.

End Part 2

Xander waited patiently at the door, dreading, and yet knowing without any doubt, who would be the first one at the door. Finally he gathered up enough courage and rung the doorbell. Three seconds later, there was a loud pounding on the other side, which got steadily closer, until the door was flung open by a very excited, and widely grinning, and short, Little Red Riding Hood.

"XANDER!" 9-year-old Dawn Summers shouted before leaping herself into Xander's surprised arms. He barely managed to catch her, and then had to quickly adjust his hold so as to keep from dropping her.

Grinning at the child crush behavior he knew oh so well, Xander greeted with equal happiness, "Dawn Patrol! And how's my favorite little bedtime story character? Seen any Big Bad Wolves around? If so, you just tell Brock the Pokemon Breeder about it and I'll chase'em away to defend your honor."

Dawn giggled, and was still doing so when Buffy, with a very reluctant Willow behind her, came down the stairs.

"Wow," Xander stopped everything and just stared at his two best friends. If it weren't for the fact that Brock was 18 and Misty 13 on the TV show, Xander had the distinct feeling that Brock most definitely wouldn't mind getting pulled back by the ear so much. Good thing both he and Willow were 17.

Buffy however, was practically a completely different person. From the male clothing, to the goofy, overenthusiastic grin on her face. But for Xander, there was just something so darn sexy about a beautiful girl in men's clothing. He didn't know why.

Willow's entire face easily matched her hair, if not turning a few degrees redder at Xander's reaction, while Buffy's grin got even wider and became much less forced. Dawn however took one look at the two older girls and then at Xander's reaction and glared at her sister and friend, almost growling.

"Not bad," Buffy commented looking Xander up and down. "Lookin' good Brock-o," she added in a rather cheap imitation of her character.

"Well thanks Ash," Xander said in a monotone while trying to gruff up his voice a little. To everyone's surprise it easily matched with the voice from the TV show and made them all do double takes at the costumed Slayerette. "Ready to go and check out all the costumed ladies?" he added in his normal voice, again, sounding more like the character than anyone thought possible.

Buffy chuckled and nodded, grabbing Willow by the arm to keep her from running back up the stairs and hiding beneath a sheet. "Sure am. Oh! Almost forgot our packs. Be right back," she turned around and began leaping the stairs four at a time, much easier in jeans than when she tried it with a skirt.

"Xander!" she shouted once she was at the top of the stairs, "Make sure Wills doesn't run away screaming like she saw a bug!"

Xander laughed and then gave his longest friend a stern look as she made signs of making a run for it. After that, she just sighed and stayed where she was, looking miserable, and awkwardly trying to cover her stomach.

"You all right _/Misty/_?" Xander asked, still a laugh in his voice. "Did you eat something to make you sick?"

"Very funny Xander," Willow growled, sounding much like her own character in that moment.

Xander indulged in one last laugh and then went over to his friend and patted her gently on the shoulder, supporting her. "Hey, believe it or not Wills, you look _/good/_. And I love what you did with your hair. How much mousse did Buffy have to use anyway?"

Willow's eyebrows went up in wonderment herself as she answered, "A lot. Should have gotten a wig. At least artificial hair can stiffen out and look like anime hair. And how the hell does that girl get her hair to do that anyway? I mean, I've seen her with her hair down, it's almost as long as mine, and she puts the pony tail on the _/side/_!! Who does that?"

"Apparently she does," Xander replied easily with a broad grin.

At that moment, Buffy came back down with her own green pack and Willow's red bag. "I put six of those plastic Pokéballs in each of the bags, and Xander, here are yours," she said handing the items to her friends. She slipped her pack on and then pulled a belt practically out of nowhere, all with six of the plastic Pokéballs attached.

Dawn, for whatever reason, found this exciting, and clapped happily.

"Yay! You're going to wear it!" she exclaimed.

Buffy nodded, and then frowned as she took off one of the balls. "Gotta be accurate," she said as she pulled out the Pikachu doll from her pack. At the looks she was getting from her friends however, she was forced to explain. "When I told Dawn and Mom about my costume, Dawn insisted I get a Trainer's belt. We had a small argument over it, so Mom made me work with Dawn in making one, or do a month's worth of chores. I chose wear the belt for one night."

"Good choice," Xander agreed. "Well, shall we go?"

"Yeah lets go! Gotta get out into the world if I'm going to become the world's greatest Pokemon Master!" Buffy exclaimed. Everyone, even Dawn just stared at her, causing her to sigh and lose a lot of the fake bluster, "Yeah, it sounded lame to me too," she admitted before leading the way out the door, the Pikachu doll tucked securely under her arm.

Willow, reluctantly, and half dragged by her two friends, came out last, using the Togepi doll to mostly cover up her exposed abdomen. She followed along, not at all looking forward to leading children around without the support of her friends. Maybe she could just make her group follow theirs around all night?

End Part 3

"Summers! What in the hell are you wearing?" a very troll-like, or perhaps goblin like considering his stature, voice shouted as the Slayer and her Slayerettes, for the evening known as Ash Ketchum and friends, walked into the school.

Buffy stopped, trying to suppress the impulse to roll her eyes and barely succeeding as Principal Snyder slinked forward from the mass of students, children, and few parents.

"My costume Principal Snyder," Buffy answered dutifully, purposely keeping her expression as vacant and dull as possible.

Sneering at the student he had been ordered to watch and knew without any doubt was a supreme trouble maker, Snyder then continued to lay out the "ground rules" for how she was to conduct herself in front of the children she would be leading that evening around town.

Xander and Willow wisely chose that moment to go and meet their own charges for the evening.

Willow, still as red as ever and holding the Togepi doll like a shield over her torso, came to the group by the stairs where she had been shown was her group, and then almost groaned in pure despair at finding that hers was entirely made up of little boys, every one of them wearing a demon costume or a demon mask of some kind.

Xander's group was a good deal more diversified, however also the complete opposite of Willow's in that they were all little girls, two wearing demon masks, one a fairy princess, another dressed up in a generic Disney Pink Time Force Power Ranger costume, and then three that he knew was going to be trouble. Because those three were Little Red Riding hood, Little Bo Peep, and Card Captor Sakura; also known as Dawn Summers, and her best friends Janice Gellar and Kristen Storms. And every single one of them, according to rumor by Buffy Summers, had a crush on him, god help him if he knew why.

Buffy finally got Snyder to make himself scarce, mostly through staring vapidly through his head while daydreaming of what it would be like if Snyder was turned into a vampire, and what she could and would do to such a demon. After the troll was gone, she smiled and looked down at the group of kids she would be leading around and smiled at them, finding it was becoming surprisingly easier to keep up the overenthusiastic attitude of her costume.

"Hey guys," she greeted the kids, all decent looking boys and girls in the classic costumes of fairies, movie monsters, cowboys, and superheroes instead of all those creepy demon masks that were floating around, "I'm Buffy Summers and I'll be your guide tonight. First and foremost thing to do is to have fun, and get as much candy as we possibly can."

"YEAH!" her kids all shouted, smiling brightly.

A cough directly behind her reminded her that the troll wasn't quite yet out of hearing range.

"So, Xander," Dawn's friend Janice spoke up, apparently trying to be sultry as she batted her eyelashes at him, "what's your costume again?"

"Uhh..." Xander was at a total loss and began to look around desperately for any help he could get. The first thing that came along wouldn't be his first choice, but he was desperate.

"Larry!" Xander shouted and quickly appeared by the pirate's side, "Man am I glad to see you. Though saying that now makes me wonder what on earth for . . ." he trailed off.

"Harris," Larry grinned and then cracked his knuckles, his face taking the leering grin of a predator, one that Xander was all too familiar with. "Your little Buffy isn't around to protect you now!"

"No, but over one hundred kids, their adult parents, and every member of the faculty of our school is," Xander hastily reminded the bully. "But if you would be so kind as to look behind me at the group of children Snyder the Troll has forced me to escort around town for this candy-fun-filled night of Halloween."

Frowning in confusion, Larry just took the suggestion and looked behind Xander to see three preteen girls in frilly dresses, each one of them with an identical look of adoration and preteen crush written all over their faces, and casting them at Xander only.

"Shit man, you have my sympathy," Larry had to admit, knowing the nightmare of little girl crushes. Then he threw that predatory grin at Harris again and slapped him on the chest, not bothering to notice that Xander didn't so much as flinch at the contact and that his hand actually stung a bit. "But not my help. Be seeing you loser!"

Xander sighed and shook his head, miserable as Larry, laughing his ass off, stalked off.

Buffy walked up behind her friend, having seen the whole thing, and after giving Dawn and her munchkin harlots a warning glare. "Would you like me to beat him up?"

"Nah, cool as it would be to see that, what would people say if all of a sudden ya started beating up people for me? First there'd be the whispered rumors, then the mob scenes chasing me through town, followed by the court order of banishment, and then the worst thing of all. All the girls would stay away from me because they'd think I was a sissy!" Xander listed.

Buffy grinned at him, amazed at how well he was matching the character he was portraying and gave him a friendly slap on the back, chuckling to herself as she went back to her group, giving one last warning to her sister on her way.

Finally the go ahead was given and the teenage chaperone's lead the way out into the budding night of Sunnydale's neighborhoods.

With a sense of foreboding, and foreknowledge, Buffy, Willow, and Xander all kept their groups in the same general area, always keeping within eye contact of each other, and at the same time so that Willow wouldn't be left to the wolves of her own group and so that those that didn't already know would be able to recognize Xander's costume.

End Part 4

Buffy smiled as her kids came back and looked to see what they had gotten. "So what did Mrs. Winkler give you?" she asked. In reply all of the kids pulled out rainbow painted pencils and desk erasers. Buffy's eyes went wide, pantomiming horror. "She must be stopped! C'mon, let's see if we can get more candy over there," she pointed at the next house on the street.

Across the street, Willow was leading her group of demons, who were constantly laughing and cajoling each other, up to another house. Flushed red with embarrassment she was just glad that she was dealing with young boys that still thought girls were icky and had coodies. She didn't know if she could handle the gawking stares or sexual innuendos she would no doubt be getting if the kids were just a couple years older.

Xander was just trying to keep from groaning and rolling his eyes as he dealt with trying to keep all of the girls, Dawn and friends especially, from running circles around him. And then, with no outward or visible warning, everything changed as every one was transformed.

"Pika-CHUUUUU!" the electric mouse Pokemon sitting atop Ash's head suddenly sneezed, accidentally letting out a 1,000 watt electric shock as it did. All the children, some of which had bought their costumes at Party Town, went screaming off into the night, back to their homes, spurred further as nearly every other person wearing costumes on the street were turned into monsters.

"Pika . . ." the yellow and orange striped Pokemon apologized to the person it was sitting atop of.

"Ah, that's OK Pikachu, I'm fine. Really!" the person, with a voice different to the one Pikachu remembered, consoled the Pokemon. Confused and concerned, Pikachu leaped down to the ground and looked up at it's Trainer, Ash Ketchum. Then it did a double-take, it's shock clearly showing in it's expression.

"Pika!?" Pikachu exclaimed, it's ears and tail bobbing straight up.

"What is it Pikachu? What's wrong buddy?" Ash asked, wondering about the Pokemon's suddenly strange behavior. "Are you . . . OK?" Ash trailed off as the Pokemon Trainer finally noticed what was going on around them. "What the . . . !?"

Pikachu noticed the surrounding chaos with almost complete disregard, because compared to the other revelations of tonight, it wasn't anything to get worked up over. Because somehow, someway, Ash Ketchum had been turned into a _girl_!!

"Pika, pika, pika, pika, PIKA-chu!" the electric Pokemon exclaimed at Ash, who still hadn't figured it out.

"What's wrong buddy?" Ash finally asked his Pokemon, but still keeping an eye on the chaotic surroundings.

Before Pikachu could properly respond, a loud and terrible, and strangely familiar to the Pokemon and Pokemon Trainer, shout shattered the night.

"YOU LET GO OF THAT WOMAN RIGHT NOW YOU UGLY LITTLE DELINQUENTS! WHAT DID SHE EVER DO TO YOU, HUH? THAT'S RIGHT YOU BETTER RUN BEFORE I CALL OFFICER JENNY ON YOU HOOLIGANS!"

"Misty?" Ash wondered aloud.

Pikachu calmly pointed out who else could it be by only emitting a singly syllable and tilting its head to the side.

"C'mon Pikachu, we've got to go make sure Misty's all right, then see if we can find Brock . . ."

"You rang?" a deep voice spoke up from just off to the left.

There Brock of the Pewter City Gym and future Pokemon Breeder stood with his normal poise and expression, and a completely different face!

"Brock?!" Ash shouted in surprise.

"Ash?!" Brock shouted at the same moment.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO YOU?!" they both exclaimed at once.

"THERE YOU ARE!" another familiar voice shouted out at them. Instinctively the two of them cringed, but that was more out of habit of hearing that tone of voice in Misty's voice.

Although it wasn't Misty's voice. Not exactly anyway. And it definitely wasn't Misty they saw stalking towards them, Togepei held protectively in front of her. For one thing, she was older. Way older.

"M-M-Misty?!" Ash exclaimed in rapid growing shock and confusion.

The angry redhead turned to look at the person that had shouted her name, and who was dressed rather familiarly, not to mention there was Pikachu standing next to the person. The only problem became that the person was a 16-year-old girl and not a ten-year-old black haired _boy_!!

Misty's addled mind quickly came to one conclusion.

"TEAM ROCKET! I should have known! WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO ASH YOU LAME BRAIN BAKAS!!!!" the Water Pokemon Mistress of the Cerulean Gym raged.

Ash and Brock instinctively recoiled and huddled together in the face of Misty in a full blown rage. While the both of them were friends with the girl, neither one of them were brave enough men to face the Water Pokemon Trainer in such a state. Most men aren't brave enough to face such a thing. Make that most creatures, human and Pokemon alike, aren't brave, or stupid enough to get near Misty in a temper.

Thankfully, Misty was prevented from getting into a full head of steam when a monster that shouldn't have existed in any world suddenly turned up to try and grab the raging young girl. Without thought, the three Pokemon Trainers reacted instinctively reaching into their packs, or belts as the case may be, and grabbed without looking.

"Misty! Look out!" Ash shouted. "Bulbasaur! Go!"

"Crobat! Go!"

"Corsalla! Go!"

"Bulbasaur! Razor Leaf!" Ash shouted. Bulbasaur reacted instantly, despite somehow sensing that something was different, it didn't matter. The Grass Pokemon could clearly see that the human Misty was in danger and thus released it's sharpest Razor Leaf attack.

"Crobat! Wing attack!" Brock ordered, pleased to see that the flying Pokemon quickly dive bombed the monster, driving it back with a slap of its four wings.

"Corsalla! Water gun!" Misty angrily commanded. The pink and white Pokemon, sensing this hostility was directed at the target rather than at it, transferred it's own aggression and confusion to powering the most powerful water gun it had ever unleashed before. In the next moment, the monster was flying through the air, powered by a stream of water originating from a tiny little pink and white creature made of coral.

"All right!" Misty enthused, catching Corsalla as it leaped at her and hugging it, and Togepei to her chest. "We did it!"

"What was that?" Ash asked Brock, deciding to leave Bulbasaur out for now, just in case any other monsters showed up.

"I don't know, but it definitely wasn't a Pokemon, and it didn't look like it could have been a guy in a costume, unless it was a really good costume. And Team Rocket's costumes aren't _that_ good." Brock pointed out.

End Part 5


	8. Power Rangers: Slayer

Title: _Power Rangers: __**SLAYERS**_

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Only the concept of "Power Rangers" comes from Saban, everything else is a made-up AU version of BtVS, which belongs to Joss Whedon and Mutant/Enemy Productions. Especially all of the drastically re-made characters. I don't get money for this, I do it because I'm bored, I like BtVS and Power Rangers, and I enjoy writing. If I got money for it, Joss and Saban could sue me, since I'm not, they can't touch me. :-p

Summary: AU of Phenomenal Proportions! Combines PR-verse with Buffyverse, where instead of space aliens and Zordon, it's demons and the Watcher's Council, except the WC is still corrupted and don't have actual Power Rangers. Or Slayers. Enjoy!

**The Prophecies:**

Originally, they read; "_In every generation, there is a chosen one. She alone will stand against the vampires, the demons and the forces of darkness. She is the Slayer!"_

And

"_They protect humanity against destruction. They only use their powers in defense and keep their identities secret. Teenagers with mighty powers destined to fight the forces of Evil. They are the Power Rangers!"_

Now, through some fluke of a misunderstanding, it reads;

"_**For every generation, they are chosen to protect humanity, against the vampires, the demons, and the forces of Evil. Slayers with mighty power, destined to stand against the darkness. They are the Power Rangers!"**_

"_**True Prophecy**_**:"**

"Two Summers,

In the time of crisis,

Will calm all beasts and Spirits,

And Virtues will light the

Path out of the Darkness."

Brief history: The Watcher's Council. Self-proclaiming "guardians" of both Slayers _and_ the Power Rangers. The problem, for them anyway, is that there has not been an active team of Power Rangers in over 1000 years and no "true" Slayer for over 300. So when the Council catches word of a prophecy that the _Hellmouth_ is going to open and pour out literal hell on Earth, they get desperate and begin to look for ways of bringing either Slayers _or_ Power Rangers back.

In their search for the Power Rangers, using Chinese birth charts as a basis, they find several locals around the Hellmouth that have the potential of becoming Power Rangers, and now the contingent of Watchers above the Hellmouth, working in tandem with the Chosen locals are looking into every possible source, technology, _anything_ to find _some way_ of activating the Power Rangers.

"**Welcome To Sunny Hell, Slayer!"**

"What the hell do you mean there's nothing you can do?!" the young man screamed at the older, tweed clad Englishman.

"I, I mean that there is nothing else that I can do. I'm sorry Alexander…" the Englishman apologized.

"XANDER!" the young man shouted angrily at him. "My name is Xander. And I would appreciate it, _Watcher Rupert Giles_, if you would address me as such. And do not tell me again that there is nothing else to do, except more _stupid RESEARCH_! I'm Team Leader, and therefore you answer to me. Now tell me, how does the exalted _Watcher's Council_ plan on getting us our powers so we can actually start doing something about the demons in this town!"

Rupert Giles, often referred to merely as "Giles" by his pupils (except when they're pissed off at him of course), was a rather intimidating figure to the average high school student. Just under six feet tall, broad figure, distinguished gray running through his dark brown hair, and intense gray/blue eyes hidden by the typical pair of spectacles that all Watcher's seemed to have as a uniform piece. Very rarely was the man seen not wearing tweed or some other English bred clothing.

Compared to Alexander Lamont Harris though, Giles was not intimidating. Xander was. Also just under six feet, but a good inch taller than the elder Watcher, Xander had midnight black hair, which he kept in a more or less kempt manner, most of the time. He had a pale-ish complexion, puppy dog brown eyes, and a rather muscular figure from working summers at his father's construction company, Harris Construction. Also, ever since the previous summer, which had just ended, Xander had been receiving martial arts training from the Watcher representatives after they told him and several others that they had the potential of becoming Power Rangers.

"Xander, give Giles a break, would you?" a light bubbly voice called out to the two men.

The source was the redhead at the end of the long table behind them. Willow Rosenberg. Another of the potential Rangers, and Xander's best friend since they were little. She had neck-length orange/auburn hair and sea green eyes framed by a cute white face that used to be rather shy. Willow's training, which was identical to Xander's, had changed that giving the once mousy computer hacker a new confidence and purpose.

Xander turned around and looked at his friend, currently hunched over a white laptop, one of the most advanced in the world thanks to the Council's reach. "Why should I Wills? No offense, and I know this'll make me sound like totally selfish," Xander said, "but I want my powers now! You Watcher's have made promise after promise of what it will be like when we become Power Rangers, but you have yet to deliver on _any_ of them!"

"Xander!" Willow shouted, startling both men by her volume alone. "Giles told us from the beginning that the Watchers never had the 'mighty powers' in the prophecy to begin with. They actually thought that our powers would develop over time, or due to threat of demonic attack. Well, we've been fighting the vampires for four months now and I'm sorry to say that I haven't gotten or developed any powers of my own, how about you?"

Xander had the grace to look down and seem sheepish for some moments before sighing and sitting at one of the chairs around the table. "It's just…frustrating," he muttered into his hands as he rubbed his face.

"I'm sorry Xander," Giles said genuinely. "I had thought for sure that the temples in Columbia would have revealed something, but… The best anthropologists and archaeologists were on the expedition and they…didn't find anything of value to us. Though I'm sure the British museum will be pleased to get their hands on that cursed mummy princess."

"I'm so happy for them," Xander muttered sarcastically.

"Don't worry about it Giles," Willow assuaged, keeping most of her attention on the screen in front of her. "Besides, Dr. Tsume in Japan has made considerable progress in his research, but I'm afraid that he's still a long way away from the possibility of making functional 'Zords' or anything like that. On a good note, Dr.'s Fairweather have made literally amazing bounds and leaps in morphing technology…but again, they are a long way from making a fully functional morphing warrior. What does 'Zord' mean anyway? It's a weird word."

Giles smiled, if not somewhat tiredly. "I've already explained that Willow. A, Zord as it was, is a shortening of the name of the original creator and as far as we know _source_ of the first Power Rangers. His name was _Zordon_, and the Zords were the battle vehicles for the first Power Rangers. We've surmised that Zordon was an alien, protecting Earth, or at the very least helping us protect ourselves from some outside threat we normally would have stood little chance against. Unfortunately, he hasn't been…excuse the expression, "hanging around" lately. As in the last thousand years lately."

"Which is why we have been researching every single lead that could eventually lead to any left over technology or powers that he might have left over after hightailing it off this rock," Xander added. "We've been over this. How much closer are we to actually _getting_ our powers Giles?"

Giles took a deep breath and let it out slowly, measurably. Then he sat down and took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose again. "Not much nearer since the beginning of this summer. In fact, I can honestly say, that at this rate, we are perhaps ten generations from any type of perfected Power Rangers. Or any type at all to be completely honest."

"Perfect," Xander threw up his hands and slumped back in his chair.

They all sat like that for several more minutes, Xander in his chair, Giles trying to get rid of his migraine, and Willow surfing the web for any and all technological advances that could result in a fighting force similar to the prophecies and tomes describing the Power Rangers of legend. Finally, Xander got to his feet and started heading for the cage in a corner of the library. It held most of the weapons that they used in hunting and killing the vampires, not to mention some more advanced weaponry that shouldn't exist and therefore was not banned from the school grounds that the Library they congregated in rested upon.

"Xander?" Willow asked in concern when he got up.

"I'm going to train. If Wes shows up, tell him I want a punching bag." And with that, Xander took out a pair of long swords, what had become his favorite weapons since he had started training. He quickly left the Library, hopefully heading for the gym, which save for gym classes was quite often empty save for the Rangers-to-be training sessions.

Willow sighed and turned back to her computer and started a fifth search, three others still compiling information, and the first two having yielding the results that she had just told Giles and Xander, just in greater detail.

"Have you had any luck Willow?" Giles asked, disturbing the silence.

"No," she answered shortly, focusing on the information sifting across her screen.

Giles sighed and shook his head. Whenever the redhead got into this kind of mood almost nothing except her best friend, her boyfriend, or certain key words that indicated danger could pull her out of it. On a plus, one usually got the correct answers when they asked her a question. Just a little more straightforward than normal. Actually, knowing Willow, it was a lot more than a little.

Just as Giles stood up to go back to his office and research through a few more old texts, the double swing doors of the Library swung open and in breezed the remaining two Ranger potentials, Daniel Oz and Cordelia Chase.

Daniel Oz, known to his associates simply as 'Oz', was about 5'6" an inch or two shorter than his girlfriend, Willow Rosenberg. He had heavily moussed red/orange hair that looked more dyed than any chance of natural, and forest green eyes framed by an often expressionless face, even though Oz had one hell of a sense of humor. And on the Hellmouth, that can be taken literally.

Cordelia Chase, the richest and once most prestigious of the Rangers-to-be, but shortly after being contacted by the Watcher's Council, Cordy (to her friends aka the other Rangers) dumped the sheep herd that she had called friends before and started working nearly overtime in training to become a Ranger. Her reasons, known to all but one, was that she still longed for her childhood crush, their Team Leader Xander Harris. It was in fact true that just about everybody but Xander himself knew that Cordelia was hopelessly in love with the 17-year-old.

"Hey G-man!" Oz greeted the Watcher the way he always did.

"Hello Giles, have you seen Xander?" Cordelia asked, as always much more cordially than the other teenagers.

"Hello Cordelia, I believe he said he was going to the gym to train. Hello Daniel. I truly wish that would cease from calling me that infernal name," Giles answered back, proceeding into his office.

The two looked at each other, then shrugged at the man's behavior and walked towards Willow at the table. "Hey Willow!" Cordelia shouted, "I just saw Harmony in the hall, naked! She was shouting at the top of her lungs that it was the latest fashion from Prada and she's going around saying that all witches are devil worshipers!"

"That's nice," the redhead half said half sighed in response.

Oz just walked stealthily around until he was directly behind Willow, and then he softly blew on her left ear. Just as Willow shivered and raised her hand to scratch her ear, she froze, then smiled brightly and turned around in her seat and practically squealed from joy.

"OZ! What are you doing here? I'm working I'll have you know. Oh never mind the work, come here you," Willow said, one sentence right after another, and then grabbed the other redhead by his collar and pulled him in for a very heavy contact kiss.

"Miss Rosenberg!" a haughty British-accented voice shouted from the door.

Willow and Oz froze in their lip-wrestling, and then all three teenagers, as one, rolled their eyes to the high heavens to pray for patience. "Hello Wesley," they all murmured in greeting.

Wesley Wyndham Price, Rupert Giles' "assistant" from the Watcher's Council. The way it works…sort of, Wesley is to Giles as a Squire is to a Knight. Unfortunately for Giles and everyone around him, Wesley is also a scheming weasel convinced that he should be the one in charge of this project and he seems convinced that Giles is a fool for letting his emotions getting involved with their charges, aka the Rangers. He stands about even with Giles, is thinly gated, and a darker complexion than most of the southern Californians present in the school. He also wears spectacles, and he is very rarely seen in anything but silk or the finest threads money can buy.

"I don't think that Mister Giles would approve of you using your…'watch' time in such a vulgar display of teenage lust, when you should much rather be working on whatever projects or school work that needs to be done." Did I forget to mention that he's also a really big suck-up?

Willow rolled her eyes once again and reluctantly let go of Oz and turned back to her computer. Oz smiled warmly at her and kissed the top of her head and patted her sympathetically on the shoulder, before turning to the young Watcher and did everything except growl at him. Lucky for Wesley, Giles chose that moment to come back out of his office with another armful load of books.

"Actually, Willow's done more work this morning than even I have Wesley, and I personally don't see the problem with a small break," Giles reprimanded his assistant. Just as Willow smiled and grabbed for Oz, who very much wanted to be grabbed, the elder Watcher added, "Just so long as it isn't too vagrant."

That froze the lovesick couple where they were, and slowly they turned their heads to look at the Watcher, who had not once looked up from the text he was reading as he had spoken. "Can we at least kiss?" Willow asked, almost begging like a puppy dog. Giles sighed and resisted the urge to roll his own eyes and nodded, but he added hastily before they could move too much closer together, "Just…try to keep it down. I haven't had lunch yet today and I would very much like to still do so."

All he got in reply was the sound of Oz's and Willow's lips smacking against each other at initial contact. Now all Giles had to deal with was Wesley…

"Mister Giles!" the thin little man practically screeched, "I cannot believe that you would allow-"

"Oh shut up Wesley!" Cordelia _and_ Giles both snapped at him. "Wesley, since I've fallen behind this morning, be a good assistant and file all the Library returns, would you?" Giles asked.

The dark, greasy haired man seemed to puff himself up for a moment or two before speaking in his haughty tone, "I hardly see the point of me doing the menial labor to maintain our cover, when my skills can much better be used in the vital research that we have dedicated…"

"Well, Xander was in here earlier, and he did mention something about that if we saw you, to tell you that he was in the gym and needed a punching bag?" Giles asked innocently.

Wesley froze mid-lecture and became almost deathly pale. Suddenly he about-faced and went to the Main Counter, saying as he went, "I'll just get started on those book returns then."

Cordelia and Giles both shared a smile as they turned back to the books that they hoped would reveal some secret or even a clue to the secret of the Power Rangers.

**________________________________________________________________________________**

TBC...?


	9. GODS

G.O.D.S.

Title: G.O.D.S.

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns all that is Buffy, and the canon is intermittent, and really not that important because eventually its all going to go out the window.

Summary: Xander's a god. This is the story of his Awakening, and how he learns to use his powers and deal with the destiny Fate dealt him.

Warning: Religious themes disputed ahead, but this is a work of fiction and is to be read as such. So don't go confusing it with what I actually believe and my sick, twisted, insane imagination.

Rating: PG-17, for sexy stuff, no actual sex, a few choice phrases, and maybe a death scene later on, I'm not sure yet.

Timeline: Set during Season 1, between episodes 6 and 9.

AN: I started this story and originally posted it on the XanderZone practically ages ago, but it never got very popular and I lost interest in it before I even finished the second chapter. Depending on how the reviews swing, I may or may not post the rest of what I have of this little diddy and if the interest is really, really, REALLY high, then I may even write more of it.

____________________________________________________________________

Prologue:

"Myth. Legend. Religion. Stories of the ancient, the unbelievable, the fantastic. The unexplainable, and the only imagined. Things that are believed to be fiction, story, or just a trick of the eye supported by the superstitious. What would you say if they were real?"

"The ancient gods and pantheons, rulers of the world and all that inhabited it; angels and demons battling on Earth; floods, fires, and destruction of sinful cities; miracles abound where today there are few and far between, if any. They all stem from one source. All caused by one constant throughout all of time."

"They have walked beside man since the beginning. They fought the war against the Old Ones and the Old Gods, forcing the way for mortal animals. They have guided and tormented humanity for ages on end, and continue to do so even today. They are immortal, their power unimagined. Matched only by others of their kind, they hold the key to the future of Earth. One of their number will decide the fate of their race and humanity's, to survive, or perish under the return of the Old Ones. They are the gods."

_**Chapter 1**_

_Dreams_

Alexander LaVelle Harris awoke in a cold sweat. He had had that dream again. The one with that weird voice from beyond talking about gods and their battle with the Old Ones and Old Gods. As the voice narrated, Xander actually _saw_ the battles that it spoke of. He saw creatures of incredible beauty and power take on and sometimes even take down demons of equal or greater power, and bigger than the Empire State Building on top of the Sears Tower!

He just didn't understand what these dreams were about! What was worse, was there the only common theme in these dreams was the voice and what it said. The battles, the creatures, the demons, the _actual_ dream was different each time. But the saying was the same.

Xander slowly sat up and looked around depressingly as he saw that it was barely even 4 AM. He and Willow were having a sleepover at Buffy's house. He drew the long straw, so he got lucky in getting the couch while the two girls had sleeping bags on the floor. Fortunate for him it _was_ a fair drawing as Mrs. Summer was the one holding the straws.

Moving carefully, hoping not to wake the girls, Xander got up off the couch and made his way to the downstairs bathroom. Then he remembered that there was no downstairs bathroom. He sighed as he turned around from the kitchen and made his way up the stairs and down the hall, once accidentally walking into the spare bedroom/storage room, and finally found the bathroom.

Once standing in front of the mirror, he turned the light on, and was surprised when he didn't even have to squint in the sudden light. Instead of being all surprised, he just felt more confused, and a growing feeling of...it wasn't anticipation, or even dread. More...anxiety. Over what, his only clue was his dreams.

He turned on the sink and filled his hands, splashing his face several times with the ice-cold water. After several times of that, he blindly shut off the sink and rubbed his face vigorously, trying to rub the water further into his skin. Finally, he stopped himself and leaned on the sink, looking eye-to-eye with his reflection. It was the same scrawny boy that had been there the last time he had looked in a mirror, but he frowned as he noticed something different. Something had changed about him. It wasn't obvious, or he would already know. It was...

Xander blinked. It was his eyes. They weren't his eyes. Well, they were, but they...they were different. He couldn't even begin to tell how. Maybe...maybe it was the dreams. He was just tired, and after facing vampires, witches, and an older, absolutely drop dead gorgeous teacher who ends up actually being a giant Praying Mantis demon that just wants to lay its eggs in him and then eat him all because he's a virgin, can give any guy a different look in the eye.

He sighed, shaking his head and turned off the light and went back down to the couch. Not noticing that he could still see as well as he did in the bathroom, even though it was pitch black in the house.

Still, Xander couldn't shake the feeling that there _was_ something different about his eyes. There was just...it was almost like the eyes that had been staring back at him through the mirror, with their solid, perfect whites, penetrating brown irises, and solid, bottomless black pupils...were literally the most perfect eyes ever. This was not pride or vanity here; we're talking inhumanly _perfect_. Like Borg perfect. 'Cept Borg perfect is probably a cybernetic eye...

Xander lay back down on the couch and let out a sigh of mixed frustration and anxiety. Maybe it was just that he had finally woken up to life on the Hellmouth...and almost getting killed a little over a week ago by the one gorgeous woman in his life that had actually been willing to mate with him... He shook his head, throwing out thoughts of demons and ...inadequacies. Closing his eyes, Xander strove to get back to sleep.

The absent state of consciousness came surprisingly easier than it had when he first fell asleep. It was almost like upon making the decision to go back to sleep was made, his body instantly complied. Unfortunately, with sleep, came the dream. _The_ Dream.

Yet, instead of a battlefield, he found himself in a place of shrouding mists, strange, unseen ground, and a dark sky that seemed more infinite than the *****actual* sky, filled with points of light that seemed just a bit too close and _real_ to be stars.

Xander was confused. He looked around for a moment, taking in what lay before him, and then turned around…and was faced with his dreams. The battlefields of monsters and demons. Given the option, Xander turned back around to the mists, and took a step forward.

For some strange reason, he felt like he had just taken a very important step, or done something incredibly important, though he had absolutely no idea what that was or could be. Curious, despite the fact that weird things happening often led to *bad* things happening, Xander took a few more steps until he noticed the mists were starting to lift just a little.

Wondering about this sudden turn of his dreams, Xander took a few more steps in the direction he had been going, when he stopped. He felt himself at some kind of barrier, though all he could see before him was more mist. He reached out his hand, just to see if he could see it in front of his face, when he felt the barrier give under the movement under his hand, and like a door opening, a division came between the mists and a completely different scene.

This one was not raging battles of ancient powers vs. ancient demons. This, if he had to hazard a guess, was _Willow's_ dream. Nothing seemed to be happening at the moment in the…dream before him, but curiosity getting the better of him once again, Xander took a step forward, and like somebody had yelled "ACTION!" to where he couldn't hear it, the dream started playing itself out.

From what he saw, he was in the Bronze, but it was completely redone to look like a French restaurant. And the only table in the entire place was in the middle of what normally was the dance floor. The popular band "Dingoes Ate My Baby" were playing a mixture of soft romantic melodies on stage, but what *really* drew Xander's attention was who was sitting at the table.

Willow, looking more beautiful than he could _**ever**_ recall her looking before, was in a royal red silk nightgown dress with diamond jewelry adorned on her, making her seem more than radiant. Her long red hair was styled simply, but it too made her look undeniably beautiful.

Sitting across from the surprisingly gorgeous vixen, was a debonair, handsome and as regal as she was beautiful…Xander Harris?!

Xander did a double take and looked again to confirm that Willow's dream bachelor was indeed himself, in a James Bond tuxedo, slicked hair, and a confidence in his eyes, expression and body that even Xander himself envied. And this _was_ himself he was envying!

Then Xander looked down at him as he was, and was surprised to see himself, his own body that is, not the dream-double, in his pajamas that he had worn to bed, consisting of gray sweatpants and a Sunnydale High Gym shirt that he had just grabbed in his rush to get to Buffy's house.

Once he had gotten used to the scene, Xander started to pay some actual attention to what was going on in it.

"Oh my Love," dream-Xander was saying in even a _voice_ that Xander found himself jealous of, "I have been a fool for all these long years. I wish to be punished for all the neglect and ignoring you that I have done ever since Kindergarten. I was stupid and deserve to be flogged for taking your beloved Barbie from you, and not instantly apologizing upon returning it to you my Love. But I cannot deny my feelings for a moment longer, I love you Willow, and I will gladly take any punishment that you can devise, but all I ask is that you let me be near you and love you for the rest of eternity. I beg of you, do not let my punishment be to be cast from your sight, for that would be the one thing that I could never bear. Please my Love, let me forever love you!"

Xander could not think. Only stare.

Willow, the Willow in the Red Dress, laughed like Cruela Deville in _101 Dalmatians_, and extended her hand, where dream-Xander immediately started lavishing kisses up, down, and all over her hand and forearm. "As much as I would love to turn you into a cute puppy dog my gorgeous Xander, I love you too, and I forgive you. I could never be angry with you or blame you for your mistakes. After all, we are only teenagers, and we're supposed to make stupid mistakes that we'll regret later on."

Xander just shook his head as he realized that even in a dream, Willow relied on the logic of the real world.

"Besides, that position has already been filled," Willow said, again sounding very much like Cruela Deville. The Willow in the Red Dress then raised her not-being-lavishly-kissed hand and snapped her fingers.

Instantly, because it was a dream, another person appeared. It took Xander a full minute to get past what the person was wearing to see _who_ it really was. When he finally did, his jaw dropped and he had to do another double take. It was Cordelia Chase in a French Maid outfit that _Hustler_ would call scandalous and _way_ too risqué! The teen Queen C was wearing six-inch heel black pumps that looked about two sizes too small, and what made them unique were tiny silver locks on them that made it quite obvious that those pumps would not be coming off. Going up Cordelia's suddenly long and unbelievably sexy legs, which were wrapped in real fishnet _gartered_ stockings, which ended about two inches below the hem of the skirt, which actually didn't go _down_ per say, but _out _like a ballerina's tutu rather than an actual skirt. Cordelia's black g-stringed panties were as clear to see as anything. Above the waist, the actual outfit matched what all of Xander's fantasies, and apparently all of Willow's too, imagined of Cordelia in a French Maid outfit, except that if the teenage male didn't know any better, he'd say that the maid was actually several centimeters thinner than the real Cordelia. The answer was given to him as Willow spoke to the dream-Cordelia.

"So, how does the new corset feel Cordy?" Willow asked as though she were one of the Cordettes.

"It feels wonderful Mistress Mine!" Cordelia said enthusiastically while sounding humbled at the same time. "Is there anything at all that I may be allowed, oh most esteemed Mistress Mine, that I might do in service of your magnificence?"

Willow in the Red Dress seemed to ponder it for only a moment before giving the French Maid the dreaded Resolve Face and said with a stern tone that really did make her sound like a mistress, "Offer yourself in supplication before my Xander and I, and then suck my toes bitch. And tell us how it feels to be the bitch that you always have been while you do it."

"It feels wonderful Mistress Mine," dream-Cordelia said as she turned around and bent over before the dining couple, no doubt giving them a full moon. "I have never felt so free, or right in my place in life as when I am serving you Mistress Mine. I am a no good, no deserving bitch that teases male dogs into a heat frenzy and then bend over and take it. I thank you Mistress Mine for taking me as yours."

Without stopping his kisses, dream-Xander raised his right hand and slapped, with a loud echoing crack, Cordelia's exposed butt. The French Maid flinched slightly, but she also immediately sighed in pleasure and smiled. She then turned her butt to Willow in the Red Dress. The red haired woman just smiled at the sight before her and then raised the same hand she had used to summon the maid and slapped both ass cheeks twice, after each slap, Cordelia blushed and if Xander didn't know any better, which he didn't actually, the Queen C turned French Maid was actually getting a sex rush from Willow's slaps.

After Willow in the Red Dress was done, the dream-Cordelia profusely thanked her "Mistress Mine" and then prostrated herself under the table and began to kiss, or maybe worship would be a better term for it, Willow's feet. Willow in the Red Dress smiled contentedly and laughed again.

Xander didn't know what to make of it, but he did see one good thing about this so far. Cordelia had her back to him. Xander's head tilted to the side on instinct as he couldn't stop staring at his view of the French Maid.

"Tell me again how much you love me my Xander," Willow told her dream-companion.

_*That*_ brought the real Xander out of his funk and he shook himself, and before he could get drawn back, he moved so that he was behind the Willow in the Red Dress. It was an interesting experience, seeing oneself that was not on the other side of a mirror. Especially one that was cooler than you.

"Oh, Buffy, how lovely to see you here!" Willow suddenly exclaimed, withdrawing her hand from dream-Xander, only to have him suddenly be by her side. Dreams.

Xander looked up and blinked in more than just shock. Or lust, or fear. Buffy, also apparently a dream manifestation, was walking in, accompanied by the devilishly handsome "friend" called Angel. Yet the moment that dream-Buffy stepped into the actual light surrounding the table, the "friend" just seemed to fade into the background, leaving only Buffy.

She too was dressed not exactly of the norm for her, but not to the extremes of himself, Willow, and certainly not Cordelia. She wore a flowing white silk dress with a deep square neckline, that more than just emphasized her bust. She looked…radiant.

"Heya Wills. Hi Xan. How's it going?" dream-Buffy asked the same way the real Buffy would.

"Xander told me he loves me," Willow practically beamed.

"Well it's about time!" Buffy congratulated her best friend.

Dream-Xander looked up from his necking with Willow, Xander did a quick check and sighed in relief when he saw no bite marks, only saliva, and the tuxedo-clad image smiled half-heartedly at the beautiful vision that was the dream image of Buffy Summers and said with not even a tenth of the conviction Xander would use saying the same thing, "Hi Buff. Wanna sit? Get the puppy to suck your toes?" Then he went back to pleasuring Willow.

"Oh Xander," Willow in a Red Dress admonished her dream companion, "be nice. Buffy is our friend. Our very beautiful friend." Xander noticed a familiar tinge of color entering Willow's cheeks.

"Thanks Wills, but it's ok," dream-Buffy said casually, and just as casually, as though she were taking off a coat, _she took off the dress_, only to reveal, in anything, a far more beautiful and skimpier one.

The neckline was now a V and went nearly to the middle of her torso, _just_ covering her breasts, and the skirt was again _just_ past her waist. And the entire dress now seemed kind of lacy and transparent almost. And black.

In both Willow in the Red Dress and the real Xander's chests, their breaths caught at the sight. Xander was too preoccupied with his own reactions to note Willow's were identical, but fortunately it was Willow who actually spoke.

"Uh…uh…wow. I-I-I mean…wow. You look absolutely amazing Buffy. I-I-I…" she couldn't say another word as dream-Buffy took the seat across from Willow in the Red Dress that dream-Xander had a couple minutes earlier.

Suddenly Xander realized the change. From a date between him, or rather a dream version of him, and the ideal "Willow", it had shifted to a _date_ between Willow and an ideal Buffy, with Willow being pleasured by himself and a humbled, and sexified, Cordelia. He had to get out of here.

"Will, you have got to deal with these issues," Xander said as he walked towards the exit of the Bronze, and just like that, he was back in the mists.

******

"Whoa," Xander said as he realized the change. He looked around, and realized that he had just invaded his friend's, his *best* friend's dream, accident or not. "I've got to find the way out of here," he said to himself and picked a direction _away_ from where he now knew Willow's dreams to be. Unfortunately he was not going back towards his own.

As before, Xander suddenly noticed that the mists seemed to be lessening, until all of a sudden he felt a barrier in front of him. Thinking that somehow the door to his own dreams had been closed, he tried what he had done before to enter Willow's dream, by raising his hand. That did not work as all he felt was his hand bumping into the barrier.

Frowning, and briefly wondering if he was about to invade another friend's dream, Xander took a deep breath and raised his hand before his face, surprised to see it as though he were in a fully lit room, not a fog-filled strange place. Then, putting his hand, palm first, against the barrier, he felt something like an energy pass through the barrier, as though something were being let down at his presence, and his alone.

Then, as before, like a door opening, the scene changed before him. It both was and was not the one he was hoping for.

It _was_ a battle of good versus evil. It _was_ a battle of creatures of light versus demons. But at the center of it was Buffy, frozen as the entire scene was, beaten, bloody, still beautiful, and her neck at the tip of the fangs of a bald white demon with red eyes, that kind of had a vampire face, but kinda didn't at the same time.

The teenager didn't hesitate. The _moment_ he saw Buffy in danger, he reacted. He did not step into the scene, he ran into it, straight for Buffy. As before, the moment that he stepped into the scene, the dream started up again, and the Master vampire began to lean in for the kill, his strength too great for the struggling Slayer.

"**NO!**" Xander shouted, his voice distorted through echo and the power of his shout as he raced forward.

Xander felt that he would be too late, but in the very next moment, something stranger than his dream so far happened. He…felt something. Some kind of, energy or power, well up inside of him. It actually felt like that time that he had first learned about vampires and that they had taken Jesse. Something from deep within him that was hot, violent, and felt like he had just plugged himself into a nuclear power plant, that when it sprang upward and out of him, things got weird.

In a flash of an instant, in the time it took for the Master to lower his fangs half a centimeter closer to Buffy's neck, Xander crossed the battlefield, which was actually a huge cavern or something, from where he entered the dream to right by Buffy's side. He didn't stop there. He threw his left fist forward and hit the white demon in the chest, right where the heart would be if it were a vampire. And rather than do nothing as though a gnat had tried to ram into him, like everyone expected to happen, the Master was knocked free of his grip on the dreaming Slayer and flew backward until he landed directly on a distant cross, a splinter from the wooden symbol piercing through to the very place Xander had hit.

And with nothing more than a look of shock on its face, the Master vanished into dust.

There was a long silence after that on the battlefield, most of it in looking at the dream walker in shock, Xander himself included in that position. It was finally broken when Xander turned and looked down at the fallen, after having been let go from the Master's grip, Buffy and reached out his hand and asked, "Are you OK?"

Like a wave of fire had suddenly swept through, _every_ other creature that was not Buffy or Xander was blown away like dust in the wind, leaving only the dreamer and the dream walker in the cavern.

Too surprised not to, Buffy took Xander's hand and he lifted her up. She finally found her voice and answered, "Uh, yeah, I…guess I'm OK. Xander, what…? How…? What is going on here?" she demanded.

Xander looked helplessly at her. "I've got no clue Buff. This, I'm assuming is all a dream, because it started out as…uh, as mine. I've been having some weird nightmares lately and…" Xander stopped talking and his hand shot over his mouth. He hadn't meant to, heck he hadn't wanted to say anything about his own dreams at all.

Buffy was looking at him weirdly though, so he uncovered his mouth. Unfortunately, as soon as he did, he started talking again. "And then I found myself in this weird fog place where I think I somehow stumbled into Willow's dream, and I just left hers and then I found myself here and now I think I'm in your dream." He almost slapped his hand back over his mouth, but thankfully he stopped talking after that.

"So…this is a dream?" Buffy asked, as though she weren't sure. Then she looked around, and then over where the Master had finally been vanquished.

Xander watched the emotions play across the Slayer's face. "If only it hadn't been," she muttered quietly. Xander looked where she was staring and nodding, understanding what she meant.

"Glad I showed up when I did," Xander offered. Buffy just nodded. Then she started looking around. "Uh, any clue on the way outta here?" she asked.

Xander shrugged. "It's a dream Buff. I saw Willow command things in hers, makes sense that you could do the same in yours."

"Yeah, except when they're prophetic dreams. Like this one. Well, almost," she corrected him. Then she started walking, and just like the scene opening before him through the mists had, it changed to a bright sunny day in the park. Xander was still in his pajamas, and he noticed that Buffy was still in the clothes she had been in down in the cavern, which was what he liked to dub her "Slayer" outfit, consisting of tight jeans, a tank top, and a light jacket.

"Didn't imagine you as the 'walk in the park' type Buffy," Xander said as he started walking beside his friend in her dream.

"Depends on the time of day," she replied stoically. "Vamps sometimes hunt in the parks. So I take strolls in the park. At night though. But…I don't want to hunt right now. I want to feel safe."

"Thus the sunlight. Good plan," Xander agreed.

"What…what would have happened if you hadn't come…by? I mean, would he have really…?" Buffy asked, a note of desperation in her voice.

"I don't honestly know Buffy," Xander answered honestly, a problem he seemed to be having in the dream. "But don't think about that. I came. That's enough. If you ever need my help, I promise that I will always try and be there for you Buffy."

"Too bad this is a dream, or you really could come in and save me like that, huh?" Buffy teased him with a grateful smile. He just smiled back at her.

"Sleep well Buffy. If you have any more nightmares…I'll come back to help you beat'em," Xander swore, and then he stepped back, out of the scene, and watched it close before him.

He took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. The relief didn't last long as all of a sudden an arm shot out of the mist, grabbed him by his shirt, and literally dragged him back into Buffy's dream.

"Shut up!" Buffy commanded. They were still in the park, still sunny. "Shut up and let me at least give you one happy dream. But if you tell Willow about this, or even think about a repeat, think again Mister Harris!"

Before Xander could even think of any kind of response, Buffy grabbed him by the head and brought him down to her lips for a _very_ hot and heavy and extremely passionate kiss. There was no tongue, no groping, just lips, and the emotion of it. A bush in the background suddenly exploded into bright red flames. Another one, behind Buffy, burst into bright yellow ones.

Finally, after a dreamtime of eternity, Buffy let Xander go and after a couple more seconds of their lips staying together, they both, as one, stepped back from the kiss. Xander's breathing was very irregular, and Buffy was somewhat flushed, but everything was behaving naturally otherwise.

"Now," Buffy said, putting her hands on Xander's shoulders, the front of his shoulders, "you go and have nice dreams Xander. And get out of mine. Sweet dreams."

"Ma'am yes ma'am!" Xander mock saluted, then he smiled gently and said back in the same way she had said it to him, "Sweet dreams Buffy. Hope they're about—"

"Out!" Buffy demanded, despite the growing smile on her face, Xander knew she was serious.

"Going," he said as he stepped back and once again entered the strange mist place. He smiled fondly as the scene closed itself before him, and that energy ran through it again, this time closing the door he was sure.

Sighing, Xander turned around and took about six steps before stopping and realizing, despite the lasting euphoria of his first kiss with Buffy, even if it was only in…_her_ dreams!…that he was now totally and completely lost.

"Ok, so…which way to _my_ dreams?" he asked aloud into the mists. No answer.

"Perfect. Just perfect. I'm lost in the land of dreams, without a map, or even a crappy little compass!" Xander raged.

"That's actually not too bad a name for it, but its not what this place is called," a voice that he did not recognize said behind him.

******

Entering fight/flight was becoming second nature for Xander now that he was getting used to living atop the Hellmouth. Even in a dream, it was still quite easy. The dreaming teen spun around, ready to either run back into Buffy's dream, or just run period…until he saw who it was that had spoken.

She was shorter than him, but just a couple inches taller than Buffy. She was wearing a strange combination of outfits. She was wearing a leather jacket that looked like it came straight from the seediest biker bar in the country, knee-high leather boots that looked as though from some professional ball player's locker, except brown leather instead of white plastic, a pleated black skirt that made Xander think it was from some kind of school uniform, a shirt under the jacket that was black and either made of latex or of the same stuff superhero uniforms were made of. And then there was the half-armor she wore over all of it, sort of a breastplate with a single large shoulder pad and then a weapons belt.

But her outfit was not what made Xander stop from running. She had shock and royal sea blue hair, in both her main head of hair and her eyebrows and eyelashes, vivid sea green eyes that seemed so sad and so alive at the same time, and a soft pale beige complexion, very similar to his own. Her hair was styled straight out of a cartoon, with a ponytail coming from the nape of her neck to past her waist, and the rest cut military style, except not short. In fact her hair was almost half a foot high.

What made him stop was the look in her eyes. Her _perfect_ eyes. It was the same look he had seen in the mirror before he'd gone to sleep.

"Who are you?" he asked, the first to speak since she had.

"My name is Kes. And I am like you…" she trailed off, apparently waiting for his name.

Stuttering in his thoughts to keep up with what was happening, Xander tried desperately to remember his own name. Finally, in a flash of glorious insight, he remembered and told her.

"Uh…my-my name, it's…I have one. I know I do…Xander! That's it. My name is Xander H—"

"No!" Kes interrupted. "No last names. It's best if we don't know how to track each other. A pleasure to meet you Xander. I'm sure you are no doubt confused as to what is happening. Is this the first time that you have—?"

"Taken a stroll in my friends' dreams? Yep. I take it you're a…whatzit called, "Dream Walker" too?" Xander asked.

Kes blinked in surprise. Then she seemed to come to some understanding. "You have just awakened. It is unusual for a power manifestation to happen so soon after an awakening, but not unheard of. This is going to take some explaining." She said the last part more to herself it seemed.

"Xander, please, I need you to wait here while I go and get…another one of us. Someone who is more experienced in explaining what is going on. Please, will you wait?" Kes asked.

Xander couldn't say no to those eyes of hers. "Sure. Not like I exactly have anywhere else to go. And I can't seem to find the way back to my own dreams."

Kes smiled at his remark and a final time said, "Just wait right here," and then she turned and disappeared into the mists.

Xander briefly thought of following her, but quickly dismissed the idea. Fortunately he didn't have long to wait as she and the person she had gone to get were back in under a minute, from his clock anyway. Once again, all Xander could do was stare.

The person Kes had brought was a man, or maybe a giant?, with wavy yellow-blonde hair and in a similar getup that she herself was wearing. At least as far as the jacket and the armor. The man was wearing well-fitted, and well-worn denims with steel-tipped cowboy boots, and a plaid work shirt underneath the jacket and armor. He was also over six feet, nearing seven, tall.

The giant of a man took one look at Xander and smirked condescendingly. "Nice jamies kid. Now what's this that you dragged me all the way out here for Kes? I don't exactly like being interrupted from my dreams to go to just another part of the Inbetween." The man said to the blue haired woman/girl. His voice was deep, but surprisingly gentle, despite the words said against him, Xander found himself instantly liking the man.

"_This_ is the reason Ron," Kes said waving her arms at Xander. "This is Xander. And he's just awakened. _Tonight_!"

Ron looked at Kes in what Xander had to guess was a mix of disbelief and awe, before finally looking back and staring hard at Xander. Xander just stood his ground, not really committing anything, nor backing down, despite that he would have if he were faced with such a behemoth in the real world.

"Impossible!" Ron finally exclaimed. "He must have awakened a short time ago. Maybe even last night, or sometime yesterday, but, no way could he have awakened _tonight_ and already be manifesting powers."

"You know," Xander suddenly interrupted, upset at being spoken about but not to like a person, "that is the second time that me getting powers has been mentioned. And what is this awakening? Are you talking about this dream I'm having…or am I in somebody else's dream again? I'm not in either one of your dreams am I? If I am I apologize, I mean I don't have a clue what's going on…"

"He really is new, isn't he?" Ron asked Kes, the look of disbelief replaced with a look of bewilderment, as though he couldn't believe that Xander was actually as stupid as he was.

Suddenly, Xander got a flash of insight as the man stared at him, with _perfect_ blue eyes, again. "Wait just a sec here. This…awakening? It got anything to do with my eyes changing just before I went to sleep? Cause I swear that when I looked in the mirror at them, something was really, really weird about them. And now I'm seeing both of you with damn near the same thing going on with yours."

At that both Ron and Kes stared in total awe at him. "You…witnessed your awakening? The…the changing of your eyes from mortal to, well, perfect?" Kes asked in a rush.

Xander could only nod. "What's going on here? Does me ending up in my friends dreams have to do with my eyes changing right before I went back to sleep…or the dreams that I've been having for the past few nights?"

"What dreams?" Ron asked, sounding concerned.

"Really weird ones. Battles, wars, hell, I mean literally Hell, and a whole bunch of stuff with this over voice, which is what makes it the same dream because everything else is different each time, saying something about some race of immortals with cosmic powers that fought the Old Ones and the Old Gods in order to make way for man. Not exactly, but you get the gist."

He stopped when he saw the two of them staring, actually gaping would be more accurate, at him. "What?" he asked, worried now.

"He's seen the Beginning," Ron whispered to Kes, who only nodded numbly.

"Xander," she began, "those dreams…very few of us have had them, but we all know what they are about. It is…extremely rare for one of us to not only have such dreams, but to manifest powers _upon_ our awakening, if what you say is correct. Is there any chance that you just never noticed your eyes change before…now?"

Xander shrugged and then decidedly shook his head. "Naw. Sides, I checked myself out in the mirror before me and my friends went to bed, and why the hell am I stuck in Truth mode right now?!" he finished, yelling.

Kes and Ron chuckled slightly, but they quickly composed themselves. Ron answered Xander's question. "It has to do, mostly, with the human psyche. The subconscious can't lie. At least not to itself. Whenever you are dreaming, or even in someone else's dream, neither you nor the person dreaming can lie. Not even here in the Inbetween."

"The what?!" Xander asked.

"The Inbetween," Ron continued, "is this place. It is…well, in-between the conscious Space/Time reality, and the unconscious Ether reality. It is how we gods communicate with one another, and how a few of us travel even."

Xander blinked and then double-checked what he'd just thought he'd heard. Then he blinked again and giving the two a look similar to Goofy's face, he said, "OK, you've just lost me."

Ron took a deep sigh, as did Kes, though judging from their postures, both for different reasons. Ron, because he had apparently given this explanation before, and Kes seemed nervous about how Xander was going to react. And Xander had no idea how he knew that.

"Basically, this place is between the real world, and every person's dream world." Ron said finally. Then he took another breath. "And we, Kes and I, are gods. But not exactly what you're thinking Xander."

"And just how do you know what I'm thinking?" Xander demanded, taking a couple steps back, briefly wondering if he could get back to Buffy before these two tried anything.

"Because that's what everybody thinks when two people claim to be gods. But we aren't, well we kind of are, but not entirely…we aren't _those_ kinds of gods. The ones that slept with every female in the world and then some, or started or betted on wars, or made promises that not even THE GOD could keep. We…Xander, we are the race that your dreams have been telling you about…and you are one of us." Ron said softly.

Xander blinked. He did that a lot as he tried to take it all in. He couldn't. Not right now anyway.

"I'm going back to the war," he said and started back for what he somehow instinctively knew was the way back to his own dreams.

"Xander, wait, you don't…what war?" Kes asked, stumped by his answer.

"Battles, demons, apocalypse stuff, remember? I'm going back to *my* dreams!" And Xander started to run.

"Xander you can't…" Ron tried to halt him.

Xander spun on the two dream walkers, a dangerous look in his eyes. "Do NOT tell me what I can't do pally! I don't know what the hell your game is but I do not have to stand here and listen to another word…_*****_!" And before anything else could happen, Xander felt a sharp and sudden pulling sensation in the center of his gut drawing him backwards, and Ron and Kes were disappearing fast, as though he were moving away from them at an incredible speed.

To the other two dream walkers, Xander just disappeared in an explosion of light.

"What happened?" Kes asked, panicked.

Ron shrugged, frowning. "He woke up." He said simply.

_

To Be Continued...?


	10. Xan Is A ShaMan!

_**ShaXan** **(Chapter 1)**_

Author: Joshua (.)

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon came up with "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and Mutant/Enemy Productions distributes it and has production rites. Shonen Jump owns "Shaman King" and to my knowledge 4KIDS Entertainment is responsible for its distribution in the United States. Please, if any of this information is wrong or in need of correcting, contact me immediately at my e-mail address ( . or ) so I can make the corrections. No disrespect is meant to the writers/owners/originators of these works of fiction, in fact I mean the sincerest form of flattery by writing this fanfiction based upon them. I stand to make no profit from this.

3 Weeks after Buffy's funeral "Xan is a Sha-Man"

Xander, Anya, Tara, Willow and Dawn were all in the Magic Box on a Thursday afternoon. School had been out for a week, but the young Summers was not enjoying it as much as she had hoped to have been. Instead, all four of them were pouring over every tome that Giles and Anya had in stock for any and every way to bring a soul back from the dead and/or a hell dimension.

All because Willow had had some nightmares recently that had her convinced that Buffy's soul was trapped in some kind of hell dimension. Considering what they knew about the way their friend and sister had died, nobody was in the mood to argue over it, instead concentrating on what Willow wanted to do. Bring Buffy back to life. Again.

Sighing, as he'd been here with Anya since the shop had opened that morning at 7, Xander rubbed his face and tired eyes. He closed his book on zombies and their doshis and got up to stretch and to get some coffee. He offered to fill the others' cups, but everyone was too involved in their reading to really respond, and Anya was at the cash register, counting the money. Giles was away, on a supply run, and was also one of the few (other than Spike) that did not know about Willow's recent dreams.

Letting out another soft sigh, Xander filled his cup and then lifted it to his lips to sip of the divine nectar.

Just as said nectar touched his lips, the image of his dead friend Buffy Summers suddenly walked through the wall and said his name like she had been looking for him and was glad to have finally found him. "Xander!" Buffy exclaimed with a smile, stepping out of the wall.

Given everything that the young Mr. Harris had been through in his life, his parents neglect, below average grades in school, fighting vampires, demons, and the forces of evil on a nightly and weekly basis, and that he had carved her tombstone and put her very much dead corpse in the ground himself, Xander's reaction was really quite normal.

"AAAAHHHHH!!!!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, dropping the coffee-filled mug to the floor where it smashed into a hundred odd pieces. He backed up and stared frightfully at the image of his best friend. His dead best friend.

"Xander!" everyone in the shop screamed with him, causing him to jump once more and look at them.

"What's wrong?" Willow asked, obviously worried.

The dark haired man looked wildly between all of his friends, and then back at the wall where he had seen Buffy come out of. Only now she wasn't there. Finally he noticed the broken coffee cup.

'_Don't want them to think I'm crazy. Think of something Xan!'_ he thought to himself.

"Uh…t-the coffee was, uh, t-too hot," he lamely excused, shrugging embarrassedly.

Still looking worried, everyone settled back down, but Willow scolded, "Well, just be more careful, all right? You nearly gave us all a heart attack there Xand." With that, she sat back down. Xander was just shamefully nodding his head.

Until he looked back up and saw Buffy practically right in front of him.

"AAAAHHHHH!!!!" Xander screamed again, backing away. Everyone jumped and looked accusingly at the young man, but when he pointed to empty air, they became really worried.

"Wh-who are you! What are you?" Xander screamed, pointing at Buffy.

The blonde dead-Slayer blinked in confusion and then looked down at herself and replied, "Which question would you like answered first?" Then she smiled and gave Xander a look that she used when he was over reacting. "Come on Xander, it's me. Buffy. You know, your superhero best friend, that is not a witch?"

Xander was shaking his head, still pointing, and his eyes wide enough to see all of the whites. Buffy started nodding. "Yes Xander, it's really me. No joke, no trick, and no you are not going insane."

"Are you sure? Cause if I was going insane, seeing dead people would be right up there at the top of popular culture reasons to declare myself insane," he quipped, but still panicked. "Seriously, what are you?"

Buffy took a step closer, just enough that she knew he wouldn't try to back away again, gave her friend a wry grin, and answered, "I'm a ghost Xander."

"Well, actually a spirit to be more precise, but yeah, I'm still dead, and again with the you are not going insane. And neither was that kid in that movie with Bruce what's his face. He could really see ghosts and he helped them out. Remember that part?"

"Xander? Uh…what's wrong now?" Willow asked, very worried.

Both Buffy and Xander turned to see all the other girls in the store staring at them. Or rather, staring at _him_. "Don't you see it?" he asked, gesturing at Buffy.

She gave him an annoyed look, repeating, "IT?!" He cringed slightly at the tone alone, but his fear remained even as Buffy calmed and told him, "I think that you're the only one that can see or hear me Xan."

"See what?" Dawn fearfully asked at the same moment.

Looking between the two Summers sisters, one of which only he could see at the moment it seemed, Xander was briefly at an indecision on what to do. Buffy beat him to a decision.

"Look, Xander, you're not crazy, this is not a trick, and I am in no way anything evil. My spirit was sent back because…" she hesitated, her face screwing up with the difficulty of what she was about to say. Xander almost prompted her, but she got over her hesitation before he had to, "…because you're…kind of…special. In a Slayer kind of way special."

All higher brain functions ceased for the dark haired man at that point. He got a kick-start when his subconscious relayed an idea that prompted the response, "Special in what kind of way?"

Everyone not seeing Buffy just looked back and forth between the empty space that Xander was talking to and the man himself, their worry becoming more so with each passing moment.

Buffy sighed and rubbed her head, and he could tell she was blushing as well. "You're…special Xander. I can't think of another way to say it. You aren't a Slayer or a Champion…exactly. Look, you're the only one here that can see me, you can see spirits, that's kind of special, right?"

Xander just continued to stare at her.

Buffy's composure completely left after that. "All right, all right already! Xander, you're something called a _shaman_. It comes from your mothers side of the family, and the reason that you've never noticed it before is because spirits kind of shy away from the Hellmouth. At least that's what I've been told. Other than that poltergeist thing at the Frat house, there _aren't_ any ghosts in Sunnydale."

"Doesn't exactly explain that special bit, or why you're here Buff," Xander accused.

Everyone else jumped at the name, but Buffy herself smiled at him and regained a modicum of her composure. "Well at least you've accepted it's really me. The reason I'm here is because you got more than being a shaman going for you. That special-ness includes a destiny. I wasn't told what that was, but I was told that it was vital for your destiny that I come back and help you start your path on becoming a True Shaman."

"A True Shaman?" Xander repeated.

"Shaman!" Tara hissed to herself.

"Shaman?" Dawn and Willow asked together.

"Look, there's one thing that I need you to do for me before I go into anything else here Xan, and it's really important." Buffy told him.

Xander just quirked an eyebrow at the spirit.

She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Look, I _so_ do not have the time or the patience to do the Patrick Swazi 99 bottles of beer on the wall thing. And I need you to do this for me before I forget anything important about it, OK!" She ended up shouting.

Xander gulped and nodded, "Sure thing, not a problem, what do you need me to do?" he asked all in a rush.

Buffy nodded, and took a breath to calm herself. Although since she was dead, no air was actually moved, but Xander figured it was a subconscious habit thing. "All right, first things first, mental aspect. I need you to think of me Xander."

"Think of you how?" he asked, totally at a loss. Just before he would start providing inane suggestions, she provided them for him.

"Uh… well, you know, _me_. Think of the first time you saw me. Remember when we bumped into each other in the hallway that first day? And remember Halloween? Well, actually, that wasn't me, so forget that one. Oh! All the times we went on patrol together, and the research sessions in the Library. What I need you to do here Xander is think of everything that you've ever known or remember about me, think about it hard enough that you could feel me right beside you. Like you could reach out and feel me standing next to you, can smell me, feel me, enough that you could almost hear my heartbeat if you concentrate hard enough."

"Okaaaaaaaay… Is that it?"

Buffy rolled her eyes, "No, that's not it. That's only the start."

Taking another no-air breath, she continued. "Now, next, and keeping that mental image of me in mind, you're going to say "Spirit Form", which will turn me into a ball of flames or energy or maybe flaming energy, and anyway, then you'll say "Unity" and put me, the flaming ball of energy, inside you."

Xander stared for several long moments before he finally snapped, "You want me to _what?!_!"

Buffy grimaced and nodded, "Yeah, they kinda hit me with that one too."

"Who's 'they'?" Xander asked.

She glared at him, making him more sure than ever that this really was his best friend's ghost, or spirit, or whatever. "Xander! Focus here. Please. I really, really, _REALLY_ _need_ you to do this! Think of it like this; it's a shaman destiny thing."

"Yeah, like that helps me," he muttered. He thought it over for all of the time it took him to remember that this was a trusted friend asking him to do this. "All right, is there any other important stuff that you're forgetting or anything like that?"

Buffy's face scrunched up in worried concentration, but she shook her head, "Nope. That's all the important stuff…boiled down to the cold hard basics. Look, the most important thing is that mental image of me. They kept telling me that you have to be able to hear my heartbeat. Otherwise, the Unity might not work."

Xander stared. "Buff, you're heart's stopped." Again with the glare.

"All right, all right!" Xander surrendered and closed his eyes to concentrate on nothing but Buffy. Wasn't that hard, he'd already had years of practice.

"X-X-Xander?" Willow called out to her friend, but he was too into his concentration to hear her.

Buffy walked around to directly in front of Xander, paying close attention to her living friend. Then she heard it. A slow, steady, and powerful, but still soft, heartbeat. '_Xander's heartbeat,'_ she realized.

Xander, however, was hearing two heartbeats. His own…and he knew in his soul, Buffy's. Slowly, as he kept his concentration and focused more and more on his friend, the heartbeats grew in time with each other, until they were beating as one. Xander felt an enormous wellspring of energy, almost like it was right in front of him, and a part of him wanted to draw on that power, call it to him and pull it into himself.

So he did just that.

His eyes snapped forward, flashing dangerously, and held out his right hand before him, like he was reaching for Buffy's hand. Then he called out with soul and voice, "Spirit Form!"

Buffy's eyes widened as she felt the tug of a living body, Xander's, on her entire being and watched with utter fascination as she was drawn like sand being blown by the wind into Xander's hand where her spirit reformed into a bright yellow glowing, almost flame-like spirit ball.

Xander felt the energy in his hand, and some part of him knowing what to do while the rest of him had no clue about what to do, he cried out "Unity!" and pushed the energy into his chest. Immediately, he felt everything that was or had ever been "Buffy" become apart of him like nothing else ever had before. But she was much more than just a part of him, she was still whole, inside of him, connected to him, but still "her".

'Buff? You all right?' he asked spirit-to-spirit. (His spirit to her possessing spirit, kind of like telepathy, only not exactly 'thoughts')

'Yeah, sure am. Quite a ride, I gotta tell you. But it's cool though. And you wanna know what's cooler? I can feel everything that you can. And I'm not talking emotions here. I can _feel_ Xan! I mean, I've only been dead for a couple weeks, but… That's long enough to notice the difference, I gotta tell you.'

Everyone else had seen quite a different sight, but still they all knew that something had happened.

When Xander had shouted out "Spirit Form!" there was an almost ethereal, otherworldly wind that swept through the Magic Box, but it was when he merged with Buffy's spirit that the shelves and everything around the shop quaked a little and the wind blasted out and away from him. And now, as he stood there, all of the girls would swear that he was standing the same way that Buffy had. Like a Slayer.

'OK Xander,' Buffy spirit-said, 'There's one more thing to do, and it's more a 'let's see what happened' thing than anything else so far.'

"Fine by me," Xander said aloud.

For just a moment, Buffy was in full control of Xander's body as she/he nodded and then strutted over to the research table that still held all the books they had been researching through all day. And everyone noticed how Xander seemed to be walking like Buffy did, with more confidence and strength and poise than they had ever seen him move with before.

Yet before they could say anything to the possessed shaman, he bent down and putting one hand on the underside of the table and steadying the other on the leg before him, he then picked up the entire table, without dropping one single book from its surface. And not just a couple inches, but she/he stood up and held it over her/his head.

"Whoa," everyone, even Xander, muttered at the sight.

'Congratulations Xander,' Buffy told him proudly, 'You are now a True Shaman, with a Slayer Spirit as your official Guardian Spirit.'

"OK, whoa, whoa, and again I say whoa!" Xander backed up from the spot where he had just displayed, if Buffy was to be believed, Slayer strength. "Buffy, what the heck did you just do to me?" he asked aloud, but not really looking at anything since Buffy was inside of him, not anywhere he could see her.

'I…possessed you?' she answered uncertainly.

Xander stopped breathing for a sec, and then started to hyperventilate. "You…_POSSESSED ME_?!" he screeched.

'Sort of. Kind of. Look, they weren't exactly clear on what would happen, only telling me that it _needed_ to happen. Xander, you're a shaman. That means…' she tried to explain.

"Whoa, I'm not into that voodoo, who do stuff Buffy!" Xander loudly protested. "I can't even help Willow mix potions! I am not some kind of witchdoctor that…"

'I KNOW YOUR NOT!' Buffy screamed from inside of him, stopping his tirade.

'Look, being a shaman is _not_ about voodoo or being a witchdoctor or even having magical powers. This much they at least explained to me in full because I made the same assumptions you did. A shaman is one who can communicate with the dead. With spirits of the spirit world. A True Shaman, when he or she wishes to, can have him or herself be possessed by one of these spirits so that the shaman can take on the attributes and skills of the spirit possessing them. I'm a Slayer Xander. Now a Slayer Spirit. That means, that when we do that Unity thing we just did, which means I'm possessing you, you have all the powers of a Slayer."

'OK, I think I'm starting to understand. But you aren't going to like make my head twist all the way around and make me start puking on everybody, are you?' Xander asked back spirit-to-spirit.

He could almost feel her annoyance as she answered, 'No. First of all, I don't know how to do that head twisty thing, I think only Mantis demons can do that.'

'Gee, thanks for the reminder.'

'Your welcome. Anyway, my whole reason for being here is your destiny as a shaman. I'm your Official Guardian Spirit, which means that whenever you need Slayer powers, we just have to do the Unity thing. And I think there are other things I can do, but it was kind of a rushed course and we didn't get to get into everything.'

'Any clue on how to…you know…separate?' Xander asked.

'Oh, well,' Buffy hesitated. 'They kinda indicated that you would automatically know how to cast me out, if we could do the Unity in the first place. A True Shaman apparently is supposed to instinctively know how to keep himself from being controlled by an unfriendly spirit and can fight against it.'

'Yeah, and that proved so well when I was possessed by a hyena the first year we met,' Xander pointed out.

'Oh, well that was magic, not just a spirit and… Hey! You said you didn't remember being Hyena-boy!' Buffy accused.

'Uh, well… I, uh, don't… I, uh…" Xander was at a loss and instead concentrated on Buffy leaving his body. At first nothing happened, and then the knowledge came to him and he focused his energies on pushing Buffy's out of his body. In the same yellow fireball, she shot out of his chest and then the ball dissolved in the air. Half an instant later, Buffy, in a reverse effect of what had happened to her to put her into the ball, reappeared.

"Whoa, that was freaky," Xander muttered.

"Tell me about it," Buffy muttered herself, feeling strange. Not exactly tired, but…just strange.

"Uhm…Xander?" Dawn timidly asked from behind Anya, Tara, and Willow, the redhead at the front. "Are you insane?"

Xander took one look at the faces of his friends and understood what they were feeling instantly. Half a minute before he had been wondering the same things about himself.

"No, I'm not insane. Apparently I'm a shaman, and Buffy's spirit has come back from the spirit world to help me with some kind of destiny thing, and because I'm a shaman that's why I'm the only one that can see her." Xander summarized.

Tara startled, and then broke out of the line and stepped forward. "Are you really a shaman?" she asked straightforward, very unlike her.

Xander shared a look with Buffy, who just shrugged back, and then nodded at the living blonde.

The expression on the blonde wicca's face was very puzzling as she looked at the dark haired man. Then she tilted her head to one side, her eyes going glassy for a moment, before she snapped back to reality and turned and told the others, "He's telling the truth. He's a shaman."

"OK, what does that mean?" Willow asked, not understanding.

Anya however understood perfectly.

"A shaman is a human with the power to commune with the dead," she announced.

"Hey, I prefer spirits from the spirit world," Buffy said back.

"There's an entire organization of shamans all over the world," Anya continued. "And every 500 years there's this Tournament where shaman fights shaman to become the Shaman King."

"Yeah," Buffy depressingly sighed. "I was gonna get to that. But don't worry Xan, you aren't supposed to be the Shaman King. If you were, you might have been trained from childhood in being a shaman. I managed to get this out of them before they sent me back; you're supposed to help the true Shaman King save the world from destruction."

"OK, so who's the Shaman King?" Xander asked Buffy.

"How the hell should I know? I was a vengeance demon for a thousand years, not a Shamaness," Anya replied, annoyed. Xander gave her a look, but then turned his attention back to Buffy.

She shrugged. "Won't know until the end of the Shaman King Tournament, which starts in about six months to a year. But don't worry, you're going to need that time to build up your own shaman powers. At least…that's what I was told. I'm kinda new at this Xander, having only died a couple weeks ago," she added at his look of 'You're no help'.

"So…you can see Buffy?" Dawn asked in the silence after Anya's annoyed remark.

Xander turned his attention to the young Summers and nodded sadly. "Yeah Dawn patrol. If it helps, she's standing right there," he pointed at Buffy. "Can even hear and talk with her too. And apparently when she possesses me that gives me Slayer powers."

That made everyone do a double take.

"Yeah, kinda surprised me too, but that's what the whole table thing was about," he added.

"Buffy?" Dawn immediately called out, looking wildly around the shop. "Are you here?"

Buffy looked sadly at her still living sister, but not really answering.

Xander caught the look and asked her, "Look, can't you like, I don't know…make something float or something like that. Write a message on the wall in blood even?"

Buffy rolled her eyes at her friend.

"I'm a spirit, not a haunted mansion ghost!" she protested.

"Well, actually, you did call yourself a ghost," he pointed out.

She glared at him and almost growled. "I'm a spirit Xan. Look, I'm even more useless than Willow was when she was a ghost on Halloween!" She had walked so she was standing in the middle of the table and even tried to pick up several of the volumes there. With everything, she just passed through it. "It's even worse because you're the _only_ one that can see and hear me. At least with Willow we could all see her."

Xander idly smiled, recalling the image, "Yeah…" he drawled with a goofy smile on his face.

Buffy's squinted her eyes and made to hit him on the arm, but she just passed through him. So instead she snapped out, "Remember Anya? Your _girlfriend_!!"

"Fiancé," he automatically corrected.

Buffy stopped, and then her entire face broke out with 'happy'! "Omigawd! Congratulations!" she screamed.

Xander stopped and then looked around nervously, and caught a similar expression on Anya's face as was on Buffy's. Sighing, he ran his fingers through his hair as he came to his decision, "Oh what the hell, yes, I asked Anya to marry me and she said yes. The night you died by the way," he added to Buffy.

She snorted and waved it off. "Look, it's better that more good than just the world's survival came from that night. I'm totally serious, congratulations. You both have my blessings, whatever that's supposed to mean."

Anya's face had fallen when Xander had added that last bit, but when he started to genuinely smile again, she felt her own smile return as well. "You really mean that?" he asked. Buffy nodded and his smile grew brighter. "Thanks Buff, that means a lot to me."

"What? What'd she say?" Dawn asked, eager to know.

Xander smiled as he held out his arms for Anya, who ran into them, and answered Dawn, "Your sister gives Anya and me her blessings. She said that it was a good thing that more came out of that night than just the world's survival." Dawn smiled, trying to hold back the tears.

"So…uh, how long can she stay?" was the young Summers' next question.

Xander looked at Buffy, who was giving him a 'Slayer' look. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm your guardian spirit Xander, and you're my shaman. The simple stuff like being best friends and my only contact with my still living family left, put aside, we got a destiny thing together."

Xander smirked and the look he gave Dawn said it all to the blonde/brunette.

"OK, now hold on a sec here!" Willow demanded.

Everyone turned their attention to the redhead. "You mean Buffy's soul is not in a hell dimension?"

Buffy snorted and rolled her eyes, almost cracking up laughing, but managed to restrain herself.

"No, I was never in one!" Buffy told Xander. "Well, I almost got caught by this sick goddess that's one of the Powers That Be, and who knows what she would have done to me if not for Lucy."

"Lucy?" Xander repeated.

"Lucy Hanover. You remember her, the Civil War Slayer that helped us out with that whole Ghost Road adventure?" Buffy answered.

Xander's eyes lit up with understanding and nodded. "So I take it you ended up on the Ghost Roads with Miss Hanover?" he asked so everyone would hear. He noticed out of the corner of his eye that Willow sort of jumped with surprise at the mention of the Ghost Roads.

"Yep," Buffy nodded.

"I am such an idiot!" Willow cursed herself. "I never even thought of looking on the Ghost Roads!"

"Funny, given how many times each of us have gone there, I figured it woulda been the first place you all checked. Checked for what exactly? And what's this about a hell dimension?"

"Uh…" Xander was at a loss as to what to say.

"Well…Willow kind of has been having these dreams lately, of you being in a hell dimension, and we've kind of been researching ways to bring you back to life," he finally told the dead Slayer.

Buffy just kind of stared. Xander could only shrug under that kind of scrutiny.

"We need to tell Giles about all of this," Willow firmly decided.

"I thought you wanted to keep him out of the loop until we brought Buffy back to life?" Anya asked.

Buffy's eyebrows went up, incredulousness written into every etching of her face.

Willow blushed, understanding that Buffy was in the room, but answered the former vengeance demon anyway, "That was when I thought he would get all Watcher-y and say that when a Slayer dies she's supposed to stay dead. But now…we need Giles input on this. If only to find out if there's a way to confirm Xander's a shaman. No offense baby, but…he's never done anything like this before."

"Yeah, that's a good point!" Xander turned to Buffy. "How come I've never been able to do this stuff before?"

Buffy shook her head in disbelief. "Were you not listening earlier? Ghosts and spirits do not stick around the Hellmouth. And those that do are whiney little kids that either killed themselves or were gotten by demons. That and…and… darn it! There was something else. What was it again?"

"Oh! Yeah! You're potential had to be unlocked. Don't ask me how or when cause I don't know. All I do know is that that's what—"

"What they told you," Xander finished for her, already not liking "them".

"Where is Giles anyway?" Buffy asked.

"He's on a supply run. Said he'd be back either later tonight or tomorrow," Xander answered.

"Great," she muttered. "So now what does Willow want to do, since bringing me back to life would kind of deprive you of a guardian spirit and in order to help in saving the world, YOU KIND OF NEED ONE!"

Xander jumped at the volume, but still got the point.

"OK, Buffy is officially not wanting to be brought back to life. Something about this destiny thing," Xander told everyone else.

"Say it!" she was suddenly on about him. "I am your Official Guardian Spirit. Tell them Xander!"

Screwing his face up, almost like it embarrassed him, it took Buffy doing the Resolve Face that finally made him sigh and tell everyone, "And she's my Official Guardian Spirit."

Again with the double takes.

"What's that mean?" Dawn asked.

"Don't ask," Xander shot back.

"Why not?" both Summers sisters asked back.

"Because I'm not sure _I_ get it, and having your sister trying to explain it doesn't help," Xander told her.

Buffy glared at Xander, squinting her eyes in anger and actually did growl this time.

Xander gave her a platitude look in return and answered back, "Well, you haven't really done a bang-up job on explaining this, and I'm still not getting this destiny thing. I'm supposed to help save the world?"

Buffy nodded.

"And I'm supposed to do that by being a shaman?"

She nodded.

"And in order to be a shaman I have to have an official guardian spirit, which is you?"

She nodded again.

Xander thought this over, or at least looked like he was before he let out a long sigh. "You don't have any more of a clue about this than I do, do you?"

"None whatsoever," she admitted in the same tone.

"Great," he muttered.

"Well, then all we can do is wait for Giles to get back," Xander decided. Buffy agreed.

"So what do we do in the meantime?" Dawn asked.

"Well, since we aren't going to concentrate anymore on bringing Buffy back…" Willow announced, "Let's just go back to Bu-uh, Dawn's place. I need to work some more on the Buffybot anyway."

"What! You mean you guys haven't scrapped that-that-that…" Buffy stuttered.

"We'll explain later, at the house Buff," Xander interrupted her. At the looks he received he just said, "She's still kinda ticked over the whole Buffybot thing." They all nodded in understanding.

"I have to stay and mend the store, but I'll be there later this evening for the Engagement party!" Anya said as they all walked out the door.

"Maybe we should stop and get some party supplies on the way," Buffy suggested to Xander as they walked.

"Good idea," he agreed.


	11. Dark Times Approaching

**Dark Times Approaching**

Author: Joshua "The Evil Guy"

Disclaimer: See my fanfic "Dark Times" for disclaimer.

AN: A sequel to my already posted story that was started, but as you can see, never really finished... or continued. It deserves to be posted somewhere, even if I never do finish it. Yet Another Fantasy...

Chapter 1 _Father's Day_

In a quiet little corner of Hell, quiet meaning that the tortured screams of torment could still be heard instead of being so loud and numerous that they drove all but the strongest, or the smartest who managed to protect themselves from it, completely deaf with the sheer level of the noise, a tortured soul was doing a little of his own torturing.

"I will not ask again!" the soul screamed as he dropped the pain stick into the demon's side once more.

After the demon's cries had finally died down, gasping for breath, even the horrid stench-infused putrid atmosphere of Hell, he answered the soul, "I told you, like all the others, I _**CAN'T!!**_"

Just for the fun of it, the soul drove the torture implement into the demon one more time. Then again as he shouted over the demon's screams, "You either tell me, or I just keep this up until there aren't any of you left. You know I can do it. My own SON, taking what was meant to be mine, is the Second of Hell's Army. I've only shown you part of what I can do, just THINK of what he and I could do together."

"HE WOULD NEVER HELP YOU!! WE ALL KNOW THAT! HE HATES YOU MORE THAN WHAT HE WAS FORCED TO AGREE TO!!" the demon shouted between screams of pain.

"Ah, but he hates demons just as much as he hates me. Meaning that in order to protect his true loved ones, he'd even ally himself with me to kill a few more like you. Now **TELL ME**!!" This time the soul let the torture go on for much longer so that the "quiet" little corner, for a time, became one of the loudest.

Finally, the demon, which actually appeared human instead of like some alien creature, broke and told the soul exactly what he wanted to know, and a little bit more. Chuckling with evil intent, the soul walked around behind the demon, which was strapped down, but he did not inflict further torture to the demon. Instead he merely stabbed the demon in the back with his own power-stripping athame, and absorbed the demon's powers. Including the power to Shimmer.

The soul, now by all accounts a High-level demon, stood there in his own little corner of Hell for a minute, until he was joined by two other souls. One had been his wife on earth, now his most trusted ally in Hell. The second was another female, but she was actually a demon, a denizen of Hell, a "local" as they say.

"Did it work?" the soul asked.

"Of course. It took him longer to break than the others," the man now demon commented to the second demon, "But I found out what we needed to know. Is everything in place?"

"They soon will be," she answered, also looking quite human, except for the shock-red hair, which was not natural and the matching eyes. "Now that we have all the pieces, we just need to contact the ones that will help us get what we want."

"What we _deserve_!" the newly made demon enforced.

"I don't suppose we have time to get another demon for me, is there?" the soul asked nervously, not wanting to anger the two demons.

The man looked to the redhead with the same question in his eyes. She shrugged and smirked and replied, "I'll get things rolling. As for time . . . well, why don't you try and find out? I'll be back when things are ready."

With that said, she disappeared in a flash of flames.

* * *

"Aaaahhhhhhh!"

Faith screamed as she hit the floor, _hard_. She just lay there for a moment, much longer than she was supposed to, until finally a concerned voice called from above her head, "Faith? Are you all right?"

"B," Faith groaned as she slowly, painfully sat up, but staying on the floor, "I've just been thrown around like a rag doll for the past two hours straight, and I've had the same thing happen for the past two weeks, every friggin' day, at the same friggin' time! I'm bruised, banged, dented, and everything else you wanna call it! So do you wanna ask that question again? Am I all right?!! What the heck do you think?"

"Well are you?" Buffy asked with a wry grin on her face and her hands on her cocked hips.

Faith couldn't stop the grin coming to her face as she snorted out laughter. "Physically, yeah, I'm five by five. My pride however, has taken a beating from these "lessons" of ours," she said as she flipped herself up to her feet.

"Yeah, well, shoulda seen me when I was first starting. I _still_ can't beat Mom, although we haven't really gone all out on each other ever since before I went through puberty. And I don't think she and Dawn ever have gone all out on each other."

"Wait a sec B," Faith raised her hand to catch Buffy's attention, "Your _Mom_ fought you, the same way we're fighting now, when you were just a kid?"

"Ever since I started training, when I was two years old. Just before Dawn was born actually," Buffy answered simply while getting back into a fighting pose. "Come on, one more time. I think you've almost got the _Judo-Nari _defense."

"B, it's raising my arms to block your hits," Faith retorted, but getting into the counter fighting position the Summers' had taught her.

"No, it's a defense technique. And you're supposed to be using your energy in conjunction with your body's movements. I've seen flickers, but if you actually applied it you wouldn't, as you called it, be thrown around like a rag doll when I attack you with the _Taki-Jon_ technique," the Slayer retorted.

Faith rolled her eyes, but didn't miss the clue that the defense she was learning here wouldn't be as effective is Buffy all of a sudden switched attacking techniques on her.

Breathing in and out, Faith focused her energy as Joyce Summers had taught her, bringing it to her center, focusing it, making it stronger, and then channeling the needed energy to her limbs where and when she needed it. When she felt that she had it, she nodded her readiness to her blonde counterpart.

Buffy acknowledged that Faith thought she was ready, and then waited several more moments, watching carefully, and reading Faith's readiness with her own senses. She smiled to herself as she saw that, for the beginning level that she was, Faith was as ready as she was going to get.

"OK then. Here we go," Buffy said. But by the time she said the word 'go', Faith was already on her back again, against the far wall and upside down.

"What the hell just happened here?" Faith groaned out, trying not to whimper.

Buffy smirked as Faith's senses finally caught up and she began to remember. From the moment that Buffy began to speak, she was moving in the _Taki-Jon_ attacking technique and all the while maintaining steady speech, moving faster than the human eye can blink towards the dark Slayer. The Dark Slayer however, mostly thanks to the Witchblade's ability to alter her sense of time, and in no small part thanks to her recent training, managed to see Buffy and track her movements, and even began to defend herself with the _Judo-Nari_ defense, and even managed to block two of Buffy's full-speed strikes, however by the time Buffy got to 'we' she could only parry the blows Buffy hit her with and that wasn't enough to stop all of the other Slayer's attacks and within the next micron, Faith was hit and knocked around for several blows before ultimately being knocked back against the far wall.

"Pretty good Faith. Now we just need to work on your speed," Buffy chirped happily and went over to help her fellow Slayer to her feet.

"Gee, thanks," the dark Slayer grumbled. She rubbed her ribs where Buffy had landed several blows repeatedly, but didn't complain about the pain there. She knew it would be gone before the evening anyway.

"Come on," Buffy clapped Faith on the back and lead her upstairs from the Summers' basement training gym, "Let's get something to eat. I'm starved."

"I hear ya B, I could eat a whole freakin' cow right about now," Faith gave her approval. It was echoed with sentiments from her growling tummy. They both laughed at it, and even more when Buffy's own belly answered with its own growl.

* * *

In the kitchen, Buffy's mother Joyce Summers was having a conversation with her long time best male friend Xander Harris. Xander was answering her questions, and eating all the food that she put in front of him to keep him there just a second longer.

The hell spawn, despite seeing through this tactic and knowing that he really didn't want to answer Mrs. Summer's questions, nevertheless kept his place and dutifully answered them, with threat of the best food he'd ever eaten being taken away if he didn't.

At exactly the right moment though, just as he was about to say something about a certain habit of a number of demons in the sewers, Buffy and Faith came up from the basement, and Xander took the opportunity to shovel all of the brownies in front of him into his mouth, and then instantly swallow after maybe two bites. The moment after that, he was at the back kitchen door saying, with a clear mouth, "Well, I gotta get going Mrs. Summers, thanks for the snack, bye!" And before she could even open her mouth to protest, he was gone.

Buffy looked confused between the door where Xander had left and her mother, then arched an eyebrow in her life-giver's direction. Joyce just sighed and shook her head to whatever the question was.

"What's up with him?" Faith asked absently as she stepped around the older Slayer and fully into the kitchen.

"It's nothing," Joyce said as she put the dirty dishes and open leftover containers away, and then turned right back around with whole trays of more snack food, but this kind more up the Slayers' alley, rather than sugar-infested junk food Xander preferred.

"Uh huh," Buffy mumbled as she took her own share of the food while Faith took the other half, "And Dawn's the next Miss USA. Seriously though, what were you guys talking about?"

"Nothing," Joyce stressed, and then walked out of the room.

Half a moment later, Buffy jerked her head in the direction her mother had gone, drawing a concerned look from her eating partner.

"Sorry, it's nothing. Just GB showing up with another report from the Void," Buffy explained. Faith just nodded, despite having no real answer to her unasked question.

"So, B," Faith said after some heavy silence, "what exactly is up with this relationship with you and your mom? I mean, I may have been my own kinda stubborn brat growing up, but I could never turn and give her the eye like you do. And then there's the fact that about half the time she actually gives in to whatever you've put your foot down on. What's up with that?"

"It's . . . really complicated," Buffy admitted with some hesitation.

"Then uncomplicate it," Faith told her succinctly.

"It's not _that_ simple," Buffy stressed. "But when in doubt, be blunt. At least that's what Mom always says. And she prefers to be totally honest."

Buffy shook her head and continued with trying to explain her relationship with her mother to her sister Slayer.

"Despite everything, the Witchblade, both of us being Slayers, background training . . . you know I'm stronger than you, right?" she asked.

Faith nodded, while wincing from the pain of another bruise, and added, "Yeah, and if I'd ever had any doubts about it in the past, I learned my lesson just ten minutes ago downstairs."

Buffy blushed some, but nodded and continued, "My mother . . . knows that I'm stronger than her. And I am. And not just because being the Slayer boosts me a little. I got stronger than her long before I ever became the Slayer. That just widened the gap for us. She can still kick my ass because she's more skilled than I am, but that's changing every day. It's part of the reason she freaked so bad the night we told her about beating Kakistos. Nobody, no human anyway, should be able to do what I did, Slayer strength or not. And those that can, aren't fully 100% human, or they've been alive for several hundred years, and will continue to live for several hundred more, maybe even thousands more."

Buffy paused, eating some more food and washing it down with drink before continuing. "She's not afraid of me, but she does know the only reason I even obey her at all anymore is out of respect for her, and out of loyalty because she _is_ my mother. So, this makes things interesting because she can't use the old adage of parenthood of telling their kids no, "just because." She has to explain the reasoning behind telling me to do something, and if I still don't agree with her, there really isn't much that she could do to stop me. So on something I'm going to do no matter what, and she knows she can't talk me around to her way of thinking, she'll go ahead and give me permission, but make me promise to be careful, or give me some hints and other tips."

"So . . . have you two ever duked it out, over an argument I mean, not training like we were down there?" Faith asked.

Buffy nodded.

"Yeah, several times. Doing stuff a lot more advanced than you'll probably get to anytime soon, but . . . The last time we _really_ had a fight and neither of us would even begin to back down, no matter what, was the night she found out I was the Slayer."

"Ain't that when you ran away?" Faith asked, recalling a story she'd heard recently.

Buffy nodded. "I ran, but not to LA like everyone else thinks. I ran to the Void and spent about six and a half months living and training there. Of course, at that time of year, six and a half months is only about two weeks on Earth. It changes all the time but . . ." Buffy stopped speaking when she caught the look on Faith's face. "Oh! The fight. Yeah, Mom had just found out by watching me dust a vamp right in front of her, and then there was the whole Angel thing, which I really don't want to get into."

"But anyway, she found out I was the Slayer, and then we had this whole argument thing because like ten minutes after she found out, I had to go out and keep the world from being sucked into Hell. She even went so far as to say, and I quote, 'You walk out that door, don't even think about coming back to this house!"

Faith gasped and stared, unable to believe the kind and caring, yet strict woman she knew as Joyce Summers would _ever_ say that to her own daughter. She'd imagined her own mother saying it a few times, but the last bearer of the Witchblade never did. In fact she did everything in her power and more to make sure that Faith would never _want_ to run away from her. But someone like Joyce saying that to her own daughter . . .

"No way," Faith gasped.

Buffy nodded, "Yes way."

"Well, obviously I walked out the door and saved the world, again. The next morning, before sunrise, I tried to sneak back in, get some clothes, other stuff, and then leave without being noticed. Didn't work."

"Because of that aura-reading trick your mom's trying to teach me?" Faith asked for clarification. Buffy shook her head to the negative.

"Nope, something else entirely. In English, it's known as the Blood Call. People with similar genetic codes, or genetic signals, can sense each other. Most common among family members, but there are people that are complete strangers with no relation other than they have similar genetic signals can have it too. The moment I stepped into the house, Mom knew I was there, and where I was."

Buffy sighed and slumped her entire body a little more, as though weighed down by the memory.

"She caught me as I was still packing. Long story short, we spent about an hour yelling at each other, and then she said something really hurtful, although it wasn't intentional, and I wanted to hit her so hard. So I did the next to worse thing. I said something just as bad, but a whole lot worse to her. And then she slapped me."

"She slapped you? That's it?!?" Faith couldn't believe it after everything the Summers family had already taught her.

Buffy shrugged, "It was a slap-worthy comment. So I punched her back. We screamed insults at each other and _then_ we started to fight. At first it was just really basic stuff. Stuff we use to beat vamps black and blue before we finally dust them."

Faith nodded, knowing what her friend was talking about.

"Then we got fancy," Buffy trailed off as the memory weighed heavily upon her.

"Do I wanna know?" the dark Slayer tempted the Fates.

"Nope," Dawn answered for her older sister as she walked in from the living room, going for what was left of the Slayer's snack meal. "I was only there for the yelling part before going to school, and then when I got home . . ." Dawn trailed off herself and shivered, in suppressed horror, Faith recognized. "They were still going at it strong, and it was a miracle the house was even still standing, although there were several very large holes in it, and several of the neighbors houses and yards. And street. And a few of the trees had been knocked down or torn apart. A few cars too."

Buffy was blushing by this time, but Faith couldn't tell if it was from embarrassment or something else entirely.

"It didn't end until after sundown and daddy finally came to break it up. I still don't see how you managed to keep him from learning you were the Slayer until GB let it slip," she told her sister. Buffy just shrugged, not committing anything.

"Then what happened?" Faith asked.

"Dad asked if, until Mom cooled down, if I would like to spend some time in the Void. Not permanently of course. I just sort of gave Mom a look, you'd probably recognize it by now, and then told him to wait until I packed some things," Buffy sighed and finished off her drink. "Five minutes after I was in the Void, I had lost my father and more than half his spies. The ones I didn't lose, I didn't wanna lose, because it's not wise to go wandering around the Void without other people knowing where, who, and especially what you are. I spent those six and a half months with friends, and training under another teacher of Quantura Techniques that resides in the Void. A bit stronger than Mom, able to compete with me anyway, and willing to teach me a few tricks. One of which was the one I used against Kakistos, the hyper-body manipulation thing that lets me move at hyper speed. There's an easier technique to get the same speed, but without the same kind of strength I have with the Quantura."

"Cool. Any chance you'll give me some hints with those moves this guy taught you?" Faith asked, her face eager.

"Not until you're ready for them Faith. Heaven alone knows if Buffy was truly ready for them, given the way she uses such techniques with such casual disregard," Joyce answered Faith's question as she entered the kitchen. She then handed Buffy an envelope, which the elder Slayer seemed rather reluctant to even accept, let alone open it.

"Bad news I'm afraid," Joyce told her daughter, "he's making it Official."

"I'm not touching that," Buffy adamantly told her mother, never taking her eyes off of the envelope.

"What is it B?" Faith had to ask.

"Is that what I think it is?" Dawn, frightened, asked.

"I'm afraid that it is," Joyce said as she put the envelope on the counter.

"What?" Faith begged to know.

"My father, until the week that you got here, didn't know I was the Slayer," Buffy finally answered, tearing her gaze away from the envelope. "Properly trained, a Slayer can be a devastating force, as I'm sure you're well aware. Strong as I am in Quantura-han Li No sake, there are things that the military of the Void, of which my father is the general of one such army, can train a Slayer to do and become that make what most demons out there can do seem like . . ."

"Like setting up a fight between an average person who has never been in a fight in his life against a fully trained, combat-veteran Navy SEAL," Joyce finished for her daughter.

"Demons are powerful, but very few of them are trained in anything except power and how to use it," the elder Summers continued, "Against a Slayer, who is quite near some demons in terms of power, but who has been trained to kill utilizing skills that maximize the effectiveness of the slightest movement towards killing their opponent, well, demons don't stand much of a chance."

"But what that envelope is about," Buffy answered Faith's earlier question, "is a request of sorts. Actually it's drafting papers. Like they did for Vietnam? And the thing is, once you're in the military in the Void, there's no getting out. For any reason. Mom, thankfully, was never a career soldier, just an Intelligence Officer. A spy, like James Bond."

"Cool," Faith couldn't begin to keep the awe out of her voice.

"And not so cool, about the whole drafting thing," she added a moment later, looking at the envelope herself.

"Yeah," Buffy quietly agreed.

* * *

"That's it Willow, concentrate, feel the magic flowing through you, effortlessly and smoothly, always in your control," Arthur Chase, Cordelia's father, spoke softly to the young witch, who was meditating, and hovering about three feet off the ground.

"Good," he continued to offer encouragement as he walked slowly and silently around the spellcaster. "Now, form a shield. Low power to begin with."

Almost instantly a clear, yet clearly there invisible bubble appeared around Willow's hovering body.

"Very good. Now, increase power, slowly, to the maximum level shielding," Arthur spoke.

Again, the change was almost immediate as the bubble went from barely there invisible to soft blue, to crystal green, to the same energy barrier that Willow had raised to protect herself and her friends from Kakistos' vampire army, only on a far smaller scale; only around her body.

"Now we're going to try something different," Arthur informed Willow, still slowly circling her. "Cast two more shield spells, without disabling the one you have set up now, and without draining power from it. They can be of whatever level you like, but one must be on the interior of the existing shield, and the other must be on the exterior. Be careful not to exert yourself, since as you know, you can't channel your powers through Cordy when training."

"I know," Willow grumbled, despite still looking like peace personified.

A moment later, as instructed, two more bubbles appeared, one, the inner shield, of the same level strength as the original, while the outer was a barely there blue color. For several moments all three energy bubbles wavered, like with static or that they were struggling to continue existing at all. Finally, they solidified as much as they could, still able to be seen through, but all of them, even the weaker outer one were indeed very solid.

"Very good Willow!" Arthur complimented her. "Now just hold them for as long as you possibly can. Then we'll move on."

Willow's eyes snapped open, a look of forlorn pleading on her expression, before she caught herself, took another deep breath, and closed her eyes before returning to how she was.

Half an hour later, no one moving and just waiting, the outer bubble began to flicker, and then, as if from a struggle, finally collapsed, leaving only the other two, stronger shields.

Before too long, they both began to weaken, in equal measures, until they were the same barely there blue as Willow's weakest shields, before finally struggling and collapsing themselves.

"Not bad," Arthur complimented the young witch, "Just under one hour before your mana ran out completely. And that was with rather small shields at that. We'll have to work on that. Now, lets practice your channeling skills with Cordelia here for the next hour, and then we'll meditate to bring your power back up to normal and then you two can go and do what teenagers do these days."

"Thanks Arthur," Willow gratefully replied, exhausted from the recent exertion.

"Not a problem. Now, why don't you two get started, I'll, uh, monitor your energy levels from the next room," Mr. Chase told them uncomfortably as he left.

"Geez, you'd think he was embarrassed about something," Cordelia, giggling, said to the witch.

Willow giggled along with her familiar, but then admonished the lithe buxom brunette, "Oh stop it Cordy, he may be the eldest and most powerful Feral Guardian of the Chase Clan, but he's still your father, and there are some things that fathers should just plain not interfere with, with their daughters. Now c'mon, get skyclad so we can 'channel'," the redheaded witch said with a rather lecherous grin.

With a grin to match, the cheerleader got to her feet, and with a quick tug, a pull and a little wiggling, dropped every bit of her clothing to the floor, standing "skyclad" before her witch girlfriend. AKA, naked as the day she was born.

Giving her mistress an ample chance to appreciate her human female bod, Cordelia smirked knowingly, hands on her hips, hips cocked to the right. Getting hot just from seeing Willow's eyes soak in her natural beauty, the familiar began to purr in appreciation.

"All right already, change," Willow finally ordered.

Grinning roguishly, Cordelia's form blurred and quickly reformed into the cat-like bestial form. Smiling, the witch absently petted her familiar, running her fingers through the fur over the beast's head, eliciting louder purrs.

"Let's get started," she finally announced and quickly got up onto her knees while Cordelia turned around until her back was facing the witch.

It really was like second nature now, merging her power with Cordelia, bonding with her Familiar. The difficulty came in measuring and maintaining that power, that bond. Of course, compared to the early days when they could barely channel at all, their current level was quite impressive. But Willow knew she could be better. Cordy knew it too, and so was patient, despite the sinful temptation a skyclad Willow was to her.

Channeling with her Familiar was one way Willow had of recharging her mana, or her magical energy. What the exercise also accomplished was to boost the witch's power and the effects of all spells that she cast. Without her familiar, Willow would be stuck to casting circles, using potions and herbs and other basics to use her magic.

After practicing enough, the redhead's power level would increase, and the amount that Cordy boosted her would increase as well. They'd already seen that, and were trying to push for more.

After only a few minutes, they reached the highest point and level of power that they'd been able to reach so far. The fight with Kakistos seemed to have raised them another level, because they both felt that they could go much further.

Another part of channeling is that Willow has to _control_ all the power that Cordy grants her, and if at any point she can't control her power, even if it's much higher and potent than the power she can control, they don't count it. The witch must have control of her power in order to use it, otherwise it is useless.

As Willow accessed more and more power, Cordelia's bestial form began to glow with supernatural light, suffusing her every cell and giving the dark furred cat-beast the look of a golden lion.

Willow's eyes snapped open as she felt herself reach her peak. Any more and she felt she'd lose control completely. Her eyes, in a manifestation of her power, were saturated and completely green, the color of her magic, and to say that gave off a certain glow of their own would not be entirely inaccurate.

You can handle it Willow Cordy communicated magically, they way Witch and Familiar could. I know you can!

No . . . I . . . Willow tried to draw in and attain that next level of power, but she felt her grasp on what she had already attained stretch and slip just the tiniest of bits. Afraid, she held back, merely saturating her magic to the levels she was still familiar and comfortable with. Once she was fully recharged though, she abruptly cut the connection to her familiar, not wanting to risk over-exposing herself to the Magic. She'd experienced that once before, and she did not want to _ever_ risk it again. Not if she could help it.

"Why'd you stop?" Cordy grunted in the language of the Familiars, something only other familiars, or the witch attached to one could understand.

"I'm fully recharged, no point in wasting any more time right?" the redhead nervously giggles, putting her clothes back on as she could hear Cordelia's father approaching.

Seemingly as a coincidence, Arthur Chase entered his daughters bedroom just as Willow had finished putting on the last piece of her clothing. "Everything OK in here?" he asked immediately, not paying anymore attention than a cursory glance at his daughter's nudity.

"Fine Mr. Chase, I'd just finished recharging is all," Willow answered shortly.

The two mystical creatures shared a knowing glance, but ultimately neither one commented on Willow's obvious fear, instead Cordelia simply got dressed again and after a couple words of farewell, Mr. Chase left.

"You might want to wear some of your changing clothing. It's our turn to patrol tonight. Oh, and maybe we should grab some extra clothes, since Faith's going to be joining us," Willow rambled.

"Fine, whatever," Cordelia shortly replied.

Willow looked over to her familiar with a forlorn expression, but she didn't, couldn't say anything as the dark-haired girl stalked out of the room.

* * *

Xander Harris was a unique creature. Not entirely unique in that he was one of a kind, but unique in that he was the only one of his kind on the Hellmouth right now. And considering exactly what he was, he very much believed that was a good thing.

After having narrowly escaping the unstoppable force that was Joyce Summers' cooking and questioning, he'd immediately retreated to one of the few places he knew he'd be safe. Hypothetically speaking.

"Ah, Xander, what are you doing here? It's the weekend," Lara Croft commented from where she sat at the research table in the Library.

"Ah . . . uh . . . uh," he stuttered, unable to think of a reply.

Of course it certainly didn't help that the Lady of Croft Manor was dressed in a flimsy baby-blue tank top and a pair of brown leather shorts so short that they didn't actually cover any part of her long, smooth, well-tanned legs in any way. Combined with her usual braided hairstyle and a pair of either spectacles or funky weird sunglasses hanging off her nose, Lady Lara Croft presented a highly arousing and incredibly distracting sight.

"Oh, hello Xander," Giles broke the Hellspawn out of his funk, coming up from behind the boy. "What are you doing here? Patrol isn't for another few hours yet, and come to think of it, it isn't even your night."

"Geez Louise Giles! Give a guy a heart attack!" Xander exclaimed, grabbing his chest in somewhat exaggeration.

"Can you even have a heart attack?" Giles asked, curious.

"Do you even have a heart?" Lara asked.

The two men turned to stare at the English Lady, confusion marring their faces and maybe a bit of hurt in Xander's case.

"Biologically speaking," she added.

"Oh, well, in the first case, probably not," Xander answered, "and in the latter, uh, yeah, I actually do. It pumps a neon glowing green stuff instead of blood, but yeah, biologically speaking, I do have a heart. One of the few ways to slow me down enough to kill me by the way."

"Or rather another Hellspawn, should one show up," Lara continued.

"Oh, believe me, I'd sense one coming from miles away. Buffy too come to think of it," he scratched his chin in thought.

"So, Xander," Giles looked expectantly at the teen.

Confusion clear in his expression, Xander just stared back until Giles finally lost patience and demanded, "Why are you here so early?"

"Oh yeah! That! Uh, Mrs. Summers was keeping me prisoner and interrogating me and I only just escaped, so I came to one of my, extremely few by the way, safe havens. Did I mention her measures of torture includes feeding you with delicious mouth-watering food until you're ready to burst?"

Lara couldn't help letting out a giggle, while Giles just cleared his throat and continued with organizing the books. "Uh, yes, I'm all too familiar with it I'm afraid," the Watcher admitted.

"So, since I am here and everything, what are you guys working on that I can help with?" he asked, walking around closer to the incredibly beautiful Lady Croft.

"Well, Lara insists upon finding ever cache and hidden treasure ever placed upon the Hellmouth, so perhaps you can help her a bit with that. You being, uh, well, uh . . ."

"A demon," Xander finished for Giles.

"Uh, yes, quite. Perhaps you know of one or two treasure troves that have not yet been, shall we say, trifled with?" he asked.

"Oh there are a couple I've come across, but I should warn you that those have already been trifled with. Cause I was the one doing the trifling." At their accusing looks he raised his hand in surrender and added, "Hey, a guy's gotta eat."

"Do you? Do you actually need to eat?" Lara questioned.

"Aren't you supposed to be a _Tomb_ _Raider_, not a Demon Interrogator?" Xander snarkily replied.

To which the English Lady elegantly replied by sticking her tongue out at him.

"And for your information, yes I can eat, but no, I don't /_have_/ to eat in order to survive. Only thing I really need to survive is necro-energy, which the Hellmouth gives out in plenty. I'd probably live for 1,000 years if I never used my armor and didn't live near a Hellmouth, 150 if I used my armor non-stop. As it is now, I'm probably going to be around for a long while. Unless of course I'm killed."

"You can be killed?" Lara asked, surprised.

"Same way most demons die, decapitation," he answered with a shrug.

"Buffy already knows that by the way," he added to Giles.

"I'm not surprised," the Watcher stoically replied.

"So, any badness on the horizon that we need to be on the lookout for?" Xander asked the Watcher, sounding almost eager at the prospect.

"Not that I am currently aware of," the Englishman told him. "Unless you, Buffy, or one of the others have been holding back in informing me of any encounter that could lead to such an event. Otherwise, the soonest scheduled apocalypse isn't for another month, by my calendar."

"You _schedule_ the end of the world?" Lara was shocked.

"More that I pay attention to possible portents and signs that certain ill-wishing, or just plain crazy demons, would use to initiate the events leading to the end of the world," Giles calmly explained to her.

"Hellmouth or ritual?" Xander asked, frowning in thought.

"Both," Giles frowned, while reading through a book.

At Lara's confusion, Xander clarified for her, "A ritual to open the Hellmouth."

"Ah," she nodded her understanding.

"How's Faith doing, by the way?" Giles asked the youth, putting his book down.

"Getting her butt kicked black and blue," Xander smiled. "Remind me to never ask Buffy for training. Ever."

"You're on your own there, lad," Giles shivered at the idea of Buffy and the hellspawn training each other in the art of combat and demon slaying.

TBC...?


	12. Körpershalter:SlayerZeppo, ZeppoSlayer

Körpershalter: Slayer into Zeppo, Zeppo into Slayer

Title: Körpershalter

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: BtVS was originally created, written, and produced by Joss Whedon and his company Mutant Enemy Productions. All I'm doing is writing a quirky ficlet in honor of his good work, despite how he, or the network, screwed it up in the last two seasons, and having some good clean…well maybe not "clean"…fun with these characters. Even the storyline ain't too original, so don't fuss, just enjoy!  Oh yeah, this is set in Season 4, before anybody found out about the Initiative or Faith waking up or… you get the idea. Oh, and Anya never came back to Sunnydale, though did help out with the Mayer, but was too scared to EVER come back.

Summary: Buffy and Xander trade bodies. 'Nuff said.

Contact for payment of coin at .

AN: Yet Another Fantasy that was started, never finished, and never posted, till now. It's probably been done before, but they never did it on the show, except between Buffy and Faith and Angel and some old guy, but never between the Main Characters, and I always enjoy stuff like that. So, please, Read & Review, tell me what you think, please!

_Insert separation line here_

Sunnydale graveyard

(There're so many that I'm not even gonna bother with making up a fake name)

"So how's life as a construction worker?" Buffy idly asked her patrol-mate as they slowly strolled through the cold and silent cemetery.

Xander shrugged, toying with the cross in his hands, knowing that Buffy was just looking for a topic, _any_ topic of discussion to relieve the boredom of patrol. "It's surprisingly well," Xander answered, keeping his voice as chipper as he could without actually _sounding_ "chipper". "The foreman, you would call him the Boss, says I have real potential in the area. He's even asked me to stay on for another project coming up."

"Well that's good," Buffy replied.

"What about you? How's school? And…what's his name?"

"Riley," Buffy answered crossly, glaring at her friend, but a smile crossed her face when she saw the glint of mild jealousy in his.

"Oh yeah, Mr. Iowa wholesome goodness. Aside from the obvious, what do you see in that guy Buff?" Xander asked and then immediately felt like slamming himself down into one of these graves they were passing.

Buffy glared at the former-Zeppo, now Construction worker-townie, but kept the annoyance out of her voice as she genuinely considered his question.

"I… Well, I… Hey! What do you mean "besides the obvious"?" Buffy suddenly turned on her friend.

Xander's eyes went wide and he felt trapped, despite being well in the open. "Uh, I, I, I mean that… I mean he's, uh, there's no good way that I can answer this question is there?"

Buffy continued to glare, but added to it by stopping and crossing her arms, waiting.

Xander sighed and stopped as well, slouching as he gave in. "OK, he's handsome, strong, good complexion, nice hair, and is not a vampire. Satisfied?"

Buffy arched an eyebrow. "You noticed his complexion?" she asked, disbelieving. Xander just shrugged and wilted further under her glare.

They started walking again.

"He does have nice hair though, I wonder what conditioner he uses," Buffy said aloud.

Xander shrugged. "At least he doesn't gel like Deadboy used to. He probably uses Pert, it's what I use."

"Yeah, I noticed that your hair seemed a bit fuller for a couple weeks now," Buffy teasingly ran her fingers through his hair. Xander just smirked and enjoyed the feeling.

They were just coming to the point at which the cemetery lead into the park, separated only by a grove of trees and a clearing in the middle of them, when Buffy suddenly tensed up and pulled out her stake. Xander, always hyper-aware of Buffy's moods, brought up his own stake and brought the cross up just in case he might need it, even if just to throw it and distract a demony thing.

They just cleared the grove of trees when the both of them caught sight of a tall man in a black suit with a vivid red silk blouse underneath it, staking a vampire. In fact, the vampire that had triggered Buffy's "spider sense".

Startled by the change, the two entered the clearing and just stood there, not sure what to do now. It wasn't until the man, an African American with a clean face and short black hair, turned to face them that maybe, just maybe, their night wasn't going to be quite so dull. Because the man's eyes were a vivid royal blue with bright orange pupils and purple irises, and he was holding up a staff that had replaced the stake in his hands as he pointed it them.

Only now did the Slayer and friend realize that they should run, and that the man, who or whatever he was, had been chanting from the moment they had entered the clearing. Unfortunately, the moment they realized this and actually tried to run, was also when they realized that they were paralyzed to the spots they stood and couldn't even turn their heads to look away from the man.

His chanting kept getting louder and louder, until he finally ended in a shout, and a blast of orange energy shot out from the staff he held and struck them. After that, things got really crazy as all of their senses overloaded, not from pain, but just overloaded, and neither could make heads or tails of what was going on. There was a brief, very brief, feeling of floating, but it passed faster than they had even recognized it, and then a few minutes after that, their senses slowly came back online.

'_Ohhh… What the hell?'_ were the first thoughts in Xander's mind. '_What happened? Hey! Where'd that guy go!'_

He came to realizing that both he and Buffy were still standing where they had been paralyzed, despite having been the equivalent of passed out at whatever that guy had done to them. He wasn't even sure _what_ that guy had been.

'_Oooo…no more pretty colors,_' was the first thought in Buffy's mind as she too came around. Once the disorientation left her completely, which surprisingly took longer than it normally might've, her entire mind focused back on Slayer Instincts, and that meant eliminating the threat.

'_What the…? Where'd he go!? Ugh! I _hate _it when they run after pulling something like that!_' Buffy raged after looking around the clearing. That was when it suddenly clicked for Buffy.

'_Hey, wait a minute… Why does everything suddenly look…shorter? Or…why does it look like I'm taller?'_ Buffy frowned as she examined the clearing more closely, realizing that it did indeed look subtly different than she normally saw it. Like she was seeing it all from nearly a foot higher.

Before she could focus too much on it though, her protective instincts kicked in. '_Xander! Is he…?'_ she stopped as she looked to her left where Xander _had_ been, but no longer was, and then panickly looked to her right, and that's where she froze again, but this time not because of a spell or anything.

Xander too had noticed the subtle change of the clearing, like the whole forest was taller all of a sudden. He also couldn't believe that his hearing and sense of smell had also gotten incredibly sharper in the past minute.

'_Wait… Where's Buffy!'_ he suddenly thought and looked to his right…and froze when he saw a lock of golden blonde hair go flying just outside the corner of his eye as his head turned. He sharply turned his head again, and this time the blonde hair settled directly over his eyes.

Gulping loudly and trying to control his breathing, Xander looked down…and saw a leather jacket, a jade green T-shirt, and denims and a pair of petite, too-small feet in leather boots. And two breasts beneath the T-shirt, and well-manicured hands with several rings on the fingers.

Slowly, Xander moved his arms so that he could look at his hands in front of his face. The manicured, ringed hands obeyed the command and came up before him.

"Oh. My. God," Buffy's voice said into the open clearing. But Xander had said it. Xander was the one that had spoken. With Buffy's voice.

"Oh boy," a male voice said beside him…her…Xander!

Xander turned to look, with wide, wild eyes, and then tilted his head upwards to stare, from a downward angle, into the face he saw every time he looked into a mirror. What he thought his face would've looked like at this moment…it did, but he was actually seeing it, which made the whole thing just wrong.

"B-b-Buffy?" Xander asked.

"Xander?" the dark haired, chocolate brown eyed, and much taller, male replied.

Xander gulped again.

"Oh boy," they said together, and both started their various degrees of panic.

"I'm going to kill that demon thingie!" Xander's voice shouted into the clearing.

"I am so dead. I am in it deep now. Somehow I just know I'm gonna get blamed for all of this, and _why_ do I have to sound like a girl when I'm acting like a girl!?" Buffy's voice cried.

"Xander, shut up!" the male voice snapped.

"Buffy, in case you hadn't noticed, that… _thing_ switched our bodies! We have to figure out a way to reverse this!" the blonde looked close to tears.

The young man looked contemplative, ignoring the girl until finally he cried out in revelation, "We have to get to Giles. He'll figure a way to reverse this, and maybe even find out who that demon guy was so I can slay him."

Xander couldn't help thinking, as his body dragged him along in a petite blonde's, that that phrase sounded even more pathetic in his voice than it ever had in Buffy's.

To Be Continued . . . ?


	13. Kal'El of Konoha Part 1

Title: "Kal-El of Konoha"

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Naruto, unfortunately, is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto, who is starting to (minimally) make up for the Sasuke-centric plots of Shippuden by introducing 'Sage Mode' and long-range version of 'Fuuton: Rasenshuriken!" but still has a ways to go to get true redemption from all the fans, IMHO. "Kal-El" aka Superman by his Kryptonian name, is owned by DC Comics, and he's been rebooted so many times that only the company really owns the trademark anymore. This particular reboot has Kal-El being blond and blue-eyed rather than dark-haired and black/brown-eyed. Also, instead of Smallville, Kansas, USA, his ship lands in Konohagakure, Hi no Kuni. And instead of the Kents, he's adopted by the 4th Hokage's In-Laws; the Uzumaki's.

Summary: The 4th never had a son, so he used an orphan from a crashed spaceship to seal the Kyuubi into. 3rd Hokage hid the spaceship and only ever told Jiraiya about the secret. Follows the story of young Naruto Uzumaki, the last son of Krypton as he becomes a shinobi and discovers his heritage as Kal-El of Krypton.

Chapter 1: Hidden Potential

_Namikaze Compound_

_Graduation Day_

"AAHHH! I'm late!" a cry echoed from one end of the mansion to the other and back again.

Minato Namikaze, Fourth Hokage of Konoha, chuckled to his wife as they listened to their son stumble and race around his room, alongside the sounds of lots of things breaking and crashing all at once before seeing him literally blur into the kitchen. Kushina, dressed in simple tunic and apron smiled at the love of her life and put everyones breakfast on the table, shaking her head in restrained laughter.

"Why didn't anybody wake me?!" Naruto screamed at his parents when he came into the kitchen at jounin-level speeds.

Minato couldn't help himself any longer and he burst out laughing. "Sorry son," he apologized when he saw the twelve-year-old, going on thirteen-year-old glower at him. "But I think it's pretty safe to say that even if you only had one minute to get to class, you'd still make it on time. Besides, your mother's still here, and since she took over as Headmistress of the Academy, have you ever been late?"

"But I promised Hinata and Sasuke that I'd meet them an hour before school," Naruto explained as he said down at his place at the table. "Wow! This looks amazing Mom! It's not pranked, is it?"

Kushina chuckled mysteriously, making the blond Namikaze and Uzumaki wonder if they should skip breakfast and grab some Ichiraku ramen on the go this morning. Finally the blue-eyed redhead had pity on them and admitted, "No, for your information, I did not prank your breakfasts. It's Naruto's big day, after all. Graduation Exam is later today and I can't very well have my own son fail for the _third time in a row_!" The Killing Intent atmosphere released with those final words had both blonds quietly in their seats ready to eat at once.

"Itadakimasu!" they both exclaimed before diving in.

"I did however, prank your chairs," Kushina admitted as she began eating her own meal.

Minato and Naruto shared a look before sighing. Consequences of living with a prankster ninja that can no longer be a ninja. Of course Minato was just grateful that there hadn't been a 'prank war' lately. It was believed that those times when Naruto and Kushina got going at each other were worse than the possibility of another 'Great Ninja War' could ever be. Especially with the collateral damage involved.

"Hm, this is actually pretty good, Mom," Naruto commented on the food. "See, Dad was right. Those cooking lessons helped everybody."

"Hmph!" she scoffed, then turned a mischievous eye towards her husband. "Well, I suppose. But what would all the women of the village do to know that they were given by the Hokage himself. Especially those... _private_ lessons..." Minato coughed, blushing bright red and focused on eating his food.

"What private lessons?" Naruto blinked innocently at his parents.

At that question Kushina joined her husband in mimicking a tomato, and an uncomfortable silence filled the air. Naruto shrugged it off with a, "You guys are weird," and finished his breakfast as quickly as he could. Considering who he was, that was pretty quick. "OK guys, I'm going to meet Hinata and Sasuke now!" he announced, getting up from the table and the vanishing with the same blurring jounin-level speed back to his room and then was out the door before his parents could blink.

"He's getting faster," Minato commented.

"And stronger," Kushina whispered. As a demonstration she pulled out a bent and warped piece of metal that had a couple of hand prints in it. "He was helping me make dinner last night while I was talking to him about the Kyuubi. Do you think he's ready?"

"We told him about how I did not defeat the Kyuubi, merely sealed it away into him on his birthday the night that he mastered the Kage Bunshin no jutsu. Your specialty as I recall," Minato replied. "He turns thirteen in two weeks. We all know what happens when he does. He needed to be prepared and the time to understand what it means. If... _when_ he becomes a ninja, a genin, he'll be an adult in the eyes of the village and the world. We have no right to keep it from him after that point."

Kushina sighed and nodded her head. Then she raised her eyes and smirked, and asked him in that 'special' voice of hers that he both loved and hated at the same time, "Need some... help getting up, dear?"

"I love you," he said with love in his eyes before grimacing his expression into one he normally showed to his enemies, "but I hate it when you pull crap like this!" He stood up and there was a ripping sound followed by a high-pitched squeal as a half-naked Minato chased a piece-by-piece-getting-naked Kushina through their empty home.

A mile away, Naruto sighed and shook his head to clear away the sounds of the conversation he'd just 'listened' in on. "My parents are so friggin weird," he said to himself before running on to his meeting point.

_Top of Hokage Monument_

_Five minutes later_

"You're late," a dull, emotionless voice stated as Naruto ran up the owner of said voice. As opposed to the moments before he came within visual range, Naruto was jogging at a slow, civilian pace while panting heavily.

"Sorry," Naruto grinned, scratching the back of his neck. "Mom decided to prank mine and dad's chairs during breakfast today. But if it's such a big deal, Uchiha-san, I'll make sure to get her back big time during dinner tonight..."

"No, that's all right, I was just joking. You know me!" the dull voice now had a touch of panic to it.

"N-Naruto-kun, are you r-really going to-to-to... prank Kushina-sama?" a quiet timid voice asked from behind the boys.

Naruto grinned and dropped his hand as he looked over his two best friends in the whole world. Sasuke Uchiha stood roughly 5'4" tall for a 12-year-old, pale white skin with bluish-black hair and dark eyes. He was dressed in his usual Uchiha-blue shirt and white canvas shorts and blue ninja sandals.

Opposite Sasuke was the heiress to the Hyuuga Clan, Hinata Hyuuga, whom had been introduced to Naruto early on in life thanks to his father playing his part in rescuing her from the kidnap attempt by Kumo-nin. She stood at 5'1" with white skin that flushed frequently and was easily noticed, bluish hair that was trimmed short except for two bangs that hung down alongside her temples, but what was easily her most noticeable attribute were the pale-lavender-on-white eyes of the Byakugan. She was dressed in her usual heavy sweater-jacket, which she'd been wearing for the past year ever since she turned 13, and tight navy blue ninja-pants and the standard ninja-sandals.

Naruto grinned and waved off Hinata's question, saying, "Nah, nothing permanent, it just made me late by a few minutes, and so long as Sasuke-chan here doesn't make a big deal out of it, I won't either."

"... Don't call me that," Sasuke grumbled, crossing his arms.

"Ano..." Hinata had a nervous habit of twiddling her fingers when in Naruto's presence, "Naruto-kun... why are you wearing that outfit?"

"Hm?" Naruto looked down at himself and was almost shocked to see what he'd dressed himself in after having to change his pants after breakfast. Normally he wore blue ninja-pants, a blue or sometimes red t-shirt and then either a navy jacket or a red and yellow-highlighted windbreaker. Today, he found out what 'Part 2' of his mother's prank consisted of. He was wearing a bright _orange_ jumpsuit, pants and jacket, with blue highlights along the shoulders and cuffs. Thankfully his blue t-shirt hadn't needed changing, but he remembered only getting this... _orange thing_ as a gag gift, saying that it combined two primary colors and still had the other left over.

"Uh... did I mention that I'm going to pay my mother back for this at dinner tonight?" his grin could only be described as pure evil incarnate.

"Ano... I-I think it's nice, Naruto-kun!" Hinata hurried to say.

"If you're blind," Sasuke snorted a quick laugh.

"I'm thinking I'm going to need some Uchiha and Hyuuga level help with my prank for tonight..." Naruto trailed off thoughtfully.

"We going to do this or not?" Sasuke sighed, trying to get to the real reason for them meeting so early.

"Geez, you make it sound so serious. It's just some extra training, Sasuke. You two got your 'payment' ready?" Naruto chuckled.

"Have you yet mastered the chakra control exercises I showed you last week, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked, devoid of stutter. The look she gave him also had him blushing slightly as he considered that he actually _hadn't_ fully mastered the exercises she'd shown him. At least, not yet.

"I wish you wouldn't call it that," Sasuke griped, fishing out a small scroll and handing it over. "You can read it later. Now are you going to help me awaken my Sharingan or not?"

"Touchy, touchy, Sasuke. Not to worry. _KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU_!" Naruto formed a cross-seal there was an explosion of white smoke, when it cleared there were another ten Naruto's surrounding them. "There. Taijutsu only. Beat them as quickly as you can, when you get down to five, I'll make ten more and so on and so on. Get you worked up enough and _then_ start pulling out the big guns, your Sharingan should awaken pretty soon."

"Ano... we have to be at the Academy for final exams by 10," Hinata reminded them.

"Then you'd better get started, Sasuke," Naruto laughed and turned his full attention to Hinata while Sasuke and his clones faced off.

"Now then, Hinata, how was your last training session with Hiashi-sama?" he asked.

She blushed and looked down for a moment, and he'd been around her long enough to know what that meant. "No, unh-uh, none of that. Seriously, how did it go?"

"Ano... I did as you suggested, Naruto-kun, but it made no difference in the end, I'm still not fast enough, and Father says that my strikes lack the proper amount of force," she answered.

"OK, so are you still wearing those weights I got for you?"

Rather than reply, she answered by unzipping and taking off her heavy jacket, showing Naruto all the reasons why she'd been wearing it in the first place, but also displaying the ninja-mesh shirt and armored-bodice covering her torso as well as the gleaming steel weighted bracers that she wore on her forearms. Across her back and shoulders, she also wore a weighted strap-vest, designed to increase the speed and strength of the person's arms in movement and strength.

"Good. Now, I got this from my dad last night, thankfully he didn't ask what it was for exactly, but this should help you in getting past that 'lacks proper amount of force' thing," he held up a few paper seals, which he quickly attached to each of her weights in turn, one on each bracer, the bodice, and the shoulder-weights. "They're gravity seals. Move around for a few weeks in these, like you have been, and when you get used to them, take them off and you'll see a big difference in your strength. Right now they're only set to double standard, or 2Gs Dad calls it."

"I also want you to try that blocking maneuver my mom showed you last week when I had you guys over for dinner. Mom may no longer be able to use chakra, but she more than makes up for that with what the rest of her body can do, and you wouldn't believe some of the things I saw her block and deflect with just her forearms! So, ready?"

Hinata took a moment to get used to the new weight she felt holding her down, before nodding to herself and Naruto, then got into her ready-position and said, "Hai!"

Immediately, Naruto moved in to attack, his fists and legs moving in precise, controlled movements, sometimes flowing, sometimes rigid, but always precise and controlled. Hinata had noticed this about Naruto before, but whenever asked in public, he just said something about how his taijutsu sucks and he's always working on it. Which, in Hinata's humble opinion, was an outrageous lie, as Naruto's taijutsu skills were almost on par with their _teacher's_ taijutsu skills! The only reason, she observed, Naruto ever lost a fight at the Academy was because he either didn't move fast enough, or he didn't put enough force into his blows for them to be effective. In other words, he lost the fight because he _wanted_ to lose the fight.

With no more words to be said, they all immediately launched into action. Naruto charged Hinata with an Academy-basic attack sequence while she defended using the _J__ū__ken_, or the Gentle Fist. Sasuke dove right in even as all the shadow clones tried to dog pile on top of him. None of them wasted any energy nor a single motion, turning everything into either attack, defense, or counter-attack with no hesitation.

Sasuke was having an easier time of it than he'd actually expected to, given that Naruto had been 'helping' him get his Sharingan like this for the past few weeks on every other day or so, as such he knew that the shadow clones should be much tougher than what a single hit could do to them. Still, as he fought the first ten, he managed to dispel half of them in the first three minutes with well-placed punches and kicks, and he hadn't even gotten to the fancy stuff yet!

Over by Hinata, the original felt it as Sasuke reached the requisite number of clones, sooner than expected too, and while he dodged a lunging strike by his opponent, he leapt back and summoned another 10 clones within a second, moving right back in to take advantage of Hinata's opening before that second was fully over with. Sasuke was surprised by the sudden reinforcements the clones had, but was not discouraged in the slightest. In fact, he started to grin and willed himself to move even faster!

Naruto, meanwhile was having to concentrate with almost everything he had just to stay one step ahead of his current opponent. She was pushing him harder than just about anything he was used to, and he regularly sparred with his father and other jounin that knew his Secret!

Of course part of what was pushing him so hard was that he wasn't really training to get stronger here, but rather training to gain better control. If he really wanted to, he could move so fast that not even Sasuke with a _fully developed_ Sharingan could see him as he attacked. He could stand still while the both of them used their strongest attacks and while he would feel it, it would not harm him in the slightest. A single attack could kill them in an instant depending on how hard he swung and where he hit. What Naruto was doing right now was learning how _not_ to show off his natural abilities.

In everyday life, he just plain didn't try, usually holding back so much that it was more like an adult playing with toddlers play-acting every exaggerated motion, that's how much he held back. Hence why he was the Dead Last of the Academy and Sasuke, who was doubly motivated to beat his brother eventually, was their class's Rookie of the Year.

He used to spar with Sasuke, and it taught him how to hold back in ninjutsu, which was tough enough with all the extra chakra he had available to him, and in weapon skills as well. Naruto could still remember the first time he threw a kunai, it had gone on for a mile, flying _through_ everything in it's path until finally it embedded itself halfway through the Hokage mountain! And at the tender age of 6 and a half too.

Hinata, on the other hand took the 'gentle' in Gentle Fist to a whole other level. She needed help in developing her own skills, Naruto needed help learning control. So they started sparring every day after school, and found a way of working together that quickly helped the other in what they needed.

Hinata was actually much stronger than Sasuke, and probably the fastest in the Academy. Naruto didn't have to hold back so much with her, in fact she was quite insulted and thought he was making fun of her if he ever tried. So, he didn't try and kill her, but he did try and tap her, like some one playing tag almost. It was still enough force from Naruto's hand that it felt like a full-bodied punch from a powerful chuunin, but Hinata was no longer complaining about him making fun of her. He also found out that she was a lot faster than she let on and was not at all like everyone else.

Everyone else, save those above chuunin in rank, looked like they were moving in thick molasses or maybe even glue. The civilians almost always looked like they were statues that took five minutes to blink. So, most of the time when fighting, Naruto was actually just standing their waiting for their fists to get close enough so he could pretend to be hit by it. Hinata, on the other hand, moved like she was underwater. Considering that the only people that he ever saw as moving 'normal speed' were jounins using the _shunshin no jutsu_ that's actually quite a feat.

That was when he and Hinata first met. Now, he has to actually speed up a bit every now and again to successfully dodge her strikes, and after she really gets going he has to put real effort into blocking her attacks and even attacking back. Ever since he'd gotten her those armored bracers he'd also had to start putting some force behind his blows too, otherwise she started complaining that he was holding back again.

Then came the day that Hinata started to really learn and use _J__ū__ken_ in their spars, and he discovered that his supposed 'invulnerability' wasn't all it was cracked up to be as when she struck with those chakra palm attacks of hers to close his tenketsu, he not only felt it, it _hurt_! It also took him almost an _hour_ to heal from it. HIM, an _HOUR_! He healed from cuts and whatever bruises in _seconds_, minutes if he broke a bone or had a gash or was infected with poison.

It took him a year before he discovered that his abilities were actually still growing and it was only a matter of time before even the _J__ū__ken_ chakra strikes wouldn't even tickle him, but in the meantime he was still vulnerable and he meant to find a more immediate way of defending against it besides just dodging or blocking. So, he worked with Hinata until he'd finally figured out the trick to _un_sealing his tenketsu after she'd sealed it. It was hard work, but it improved his chakra control, allowed him to beat the _J__ū__ken_ and gave her a tougher target to hit, as she only won when all his tenketsu were closed or just enough that he could no longer fight.

Finally, it came the day when the standard _J__ū__ken_ she was learning from her father and clan just wasn't enough to beat her blond sparring partner anymore, so she started looking to other sources to help her. Naruto decided to help her out, despite the fact that she was doing it just so she could beat him, and introduced her to some of his father's friends, who also occasionally helped in training him, although they trained to make him stronger, not just to increase his control.

From Gai Might, she learned the basics of the _G__ō__ken_, or Strong Fist. The basics were Endurance, Kicking, Strength, Punching, Endurance, Blocking, Strength, and Endurance. She also got all her weights from him and got her hair cut into the bowl shape before anybody could help her escape. She was still trying to grow it back out.

From Anko, she learned the _Hebiken_, or Serpent Fist, which taught her incredible flexibility and added speed to her already rapid _J__ū__ken_ strikes as well as giving her new ways of delivering those strikes. Naruto, and a few other boys entering puberty, certainly didn't think that it hurt that the young Hyuuga heiress also picked up a few of Anko's... wardrobe preferences as well.

From Kushina, Naruto's mother who taught him the same time she was teaching Hinata (and maybe one or two others), they learned the _Uzuken_, the Whirlpool Fist though more commonly called Swirl Fist. Just because the woman couldn't use chakra doesn't mean she can't keep in shape and it certainly doesn't mean she can't teach what she knows to those willing to learn. The key to the _Uzuken_ was the twirling and swirling motions, sometimes just standing in place while spinning around, but more often than not it involved dodging to the side as move past your opponent and in their guard to throw them to the ground.

Finally, Arashi Kazama, also known as Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage, taught Hinata three basic techniques. She's actually still learning them, but Naruto could see in their current fight that she was already applying those lessons to the best of her ability. He taught her the secret behind the immense strength of Tsunade of the Sannin, the _Hishou no jutsu_ (Flying Technique), and how to turn anything into a throwing weapon.

So far, those that had mastered the _Hishou no jutsu_ could be counted on one hand; Minato, Kakashi Hatake, and the Third Hokage's son Asuma Sarutobi. Minato had developed the technique to keep up with his five year old son who suddenly found himself floating three feet above his bed after a nightmare one night and decided that he liked flying all over the place. Hinata could float about two inches off the ground for about five minutes, allowing for increased maneuverability, but until her chakra reserves increased she was stuck on the ground. Likewise, her mimicry of Tsunade's immense strength was slow in coming along, but slowly improving as time went by and her chakra control increased.

Back to the current sparring match, however, Naruto was reaching the limits of the Academy-taught taijutsu and finally, as Hinata unleashed a rapid-fire combo that combined the elements of _J__ū__ken_, _G__ō__ken_, _Hebiken_, and _Uzuken_, he was forced to abandon the basics and blocked with the counter developed from his own blend of martial arts he'd learned from parents and friends.

Hinata smiled widely at him as they stepped back for a moment, Naruto to make more clones for Sasuke to fight, and Hinata to catch her breath. He was glad to see her smile, she was cute when she smiled like that. Plus, she rarely ever smiled when at the Academy or anywhere else as the Hyuuga had a reputation to maintain, and her father and other clan members treated her like a disobedient child if she was ever seen without a scowl on her face, let alone smiling at someone.

"OK, you caught me," he chuckled, doing more to distract her with just that than any 'distraction technique' in his entire pranking arsenal. "Let's take it up to the next level then, shall we?" he grinned at her.

She smiled back, her blood and heart racing and nodded at him, before settling back into her stance.

Naruto aped her and fell into his own basic stance, not the Academy's, and they moved together at the same instant to resume their sparring match.

Over by Sasuke, the young Uchiha was having more trouble than he'd expected to by this point. He was managing to land a solid hit, thereby dispelling at least one clone per minute, but Naruto kept 'refilling' the ranks, so to speak. Currently he was facing just under twenty shadow clones and they were all moving faster than before, as well as using more advanced taijutsu techniques.

Unfortunately, for the last Uchiha of Konoha, that meant he was having to dodge and defend even moreso, even as he worked to land a solid blow on just _one_ of the clones, because anything other than a _solid, chakra-enhanced_ punch or kick just wouldn't cut it and the clone would not be dispelled. This lead to Sasuke taking some hits himself, but he'd learned long ago to never let Naruto get a solid hit on him, otherwise he would go flying. Even the clones, who didn't have the same level of insane strength Naruto could wield when he finally stopped holding back, could still shatter man-sized boulders into sand-sized pebbles with just one hit.

Something was happening though. The faster the clones went, both in attacking and dodging and even just plain running around, to Sasuke they started off blurry, and then came sharply into focus. Just as he could begin to track the faster clones, they blurred away again and Sasuke was left wondering what had happened. He was beginning to see! But it wasn't there yet.

So, he pushed harder and started to move as fast as he could and hit harder and made sure each hit was more accurate. He couldn't go another day without his Sharingan! He would attain his family's legacy and he would master it! Even if it killed him!

His hands flashed through the seals almost as an afterthought as he took a deep breath and used the jutsu taught to him by his father before... before he died to protect the honor of the Uchiha clan. "_Katon: Gōkakyu no Jutsu_!" He breathed out a giant fireball that spread quickly and managed to hit just over half of the clones and did more than sufficient damage to dispel them. When it exploded, it even managed to catch another two or three from the force alone.

"Heh," the last few shadow clones chuckled, "Was wondering when you'd lose patience and pull out the ninjutsu. Yo Chief!"

"One—second—Hinata—!" the real Naruto grunted, dodging several of her strikes, before she suddenly backed off. He formed the cross-seal once more, then seemed to pause for several seconds instead of just instantly summon another set of clones. They soon found out why as he screamed a moment later, "_TAJ__Ū_ _KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU_!" Dozens and dozens of white cloud explosions later and nearly a hundred shadow clones surrounded Sasuke, all in ready positions.

"OK, now where were we?" Naruto smiled at Hinata while Sasuke gulped in appreciation for what he now faced. It made what he'd faced so far look like a kid's backyard brawl compared to this!

Over fifteen minutes later, thankfully during which Naruto did not refill the clones, Sasuke had finally dispelled all of them, and what made it all worth it, both of his pupils were a bright royal red color with two magatama each, indicating the First Level of the Sharingan. He almost didn't want to let the feeling go, as he could clearly see the surrounding chakra in the air, the earth, everywhere, but he was close to chakra exhaustion and it was still only the morning!

Naruto and Hinata were also in quite a state, and if anyone had been witness to their 'sparring match', they might have confused it for an epic battle of two A-Rank Jounin! Hinata had gotten faster and stronger too, Naruto noticed. He eventually had to stop holding back, though he certainly didn't go all out or intentionally try and hurt her either.

When all three of them lay there, exhausted (except for Naruto) sweating and panting, it was only a quarter of an hour until they had to be at the Academy. Naruto let his friends lay there for about five more minutes, using the time to get them water and morning snacks. When they were up and ready, Naruto grinned, then created two extra shadow clones and had them carry the Uchiha and the Hyuuga and raced alongside them at near-jounin speeds as they ran down the mountain to the Academy. They got there with only minutes to spare. Minutes that each of them needed to make themselves presentable for public.

Naruto, on the other hand, walked on in with a smile of satisfaction. It was going to be a good day.

R&R, TBC...


	14. REALM

REALM: (By: The Evil Guy, Enterprise1701_d, and Doc4)

Last week of October. Just a couple more days to Halloween... Buffy Summers ducked deeper into her jacket. Even though it never got really cold in Sunnydale, California, she felt a chill run down her spine. Everywhere she looked, preparations were in full swing, kids were laughing, parents smiling.

So why did she feel so depressed? They had beaten Adam, the crazy Hitler wannabe made from various demonic and robotic parts. She and Willow were in college, still doing the 'normal' routine, going to school, getting grades. So why didn't she feel better? She'd have to appreciate the normalcy of college... not being in this mega-depression.

Xander was still looking for _decent_ work, but on top of that situation, his parents had kicked him out of the basement apartment he'd been living in since graduating High School. Giles was now supporting Xander through room and board, despite being unemployed himself. Although occasionally the former Watcher went down to the local coffee shop to strum his guitar and get a few tips off playing favorite songs, she hadn't seen him do that in quite a while.

And then there was her personal life, which was an even bigger mess. Riley had left after the whole Angel thing, and even after helping stop ADAM they knew they were through. The spark had left. Buffy sighed, pushing herself deeper into her jacket, trying to focus on the job at hand. Patrol. Yes, some good old-fashioned Slayage would solve her problems... or at least make her temporarily forget about them.

About having to stay with her mother over the summer, which allowed her to be by her mother's bedside as a tumor slowly drove her mother crazy, and then killed her before the doctors could operate.

But now she had to deal with her night job, killing vampires and demons.

Buffy scowled. The first vamp she saw was going to be in a whole world of hurt.

Life Insurance was running low... which meant she'd have to get a job soon.

Buffy kicked a coke-can discarded on the street. The hapless piece of metal flew across the street, clanged off a pillar, and disappeared. Slayer Strength. Huh. Where was Slayer Strength when she was in financial trouble? Buffy sunk deeper into her depression.

The coke can she had kicked rattled somewhere behind her. Buffy grinned. A stalker... one she'd enjoy kicking the crap out of him, her, it, or miscellaneous. She stopped in her tracks, and shouted over her shoulder, "You can come out now! Much as I love being stalked, I've got a midterm to study for and I'd like to wrap this up as soon as possible!"

Yeah, she added in thought. and I need to get rid of some built-up stress before I can settle down!

The can stopped abruptly, as if someone had caught it. She turned around, anticipating some Slayage. Her adrenaline started pumping, her muscles coiling around her bones like pneumatic-pressure springs, and her senses sharpened to beyond superhuman where she could hear and see a hundred meters, or more, off in the dead of night like it was noon on a cloudless Sunday. She watched a tall, rather handsome man step out of the shadows. He was still moderately attractive even with the scar that ran from above his right eye down to the height of his nose, he was dressed in a set of solid black armor that seemed to suck up the darkness of the Californian night, with slight golden accents near the joints. His dark eyes never left her, and Buffy awaited him curiously. Would he attack her? Would she attack *him* first? She smiled inwardly.

"Greetings your Highness," he spoke properly with a gravelly voice. "We have been searching for you for a long time. To have finally found you is a moment of rejoicing. It is an honor," he bowed low.

After that rather surprising action, Buffy noticed other figures moving from the dark, coming in behind the guy in the armor, wearing armor and medieval weapons themselves. It was even more surprising and shocking when the twelve other soldiers formed a circle around her and the first guy, as well as the rest went to one knee and basically treated her like she was some kind of royalty.

"Whoa, whoa, WHOA!" Buffy suddenly shouted when the knights, as they couldn't be anything else wearing armor like that, knelt all around her. "First of all," Buffy demanded, "who are you, and what is with the bowing and the . . . highness stuff?"

"Your Highness," the scarred man stood up to speak, "we have been seeking you and awaiting the arrival of the Chosen One for more than 2000 years. We hail from the realm of Odin, where your ancestor, King Remmus XII, the last human and true ruler of the Summer bloodline ruled as King. He disappeared from our realm 1,977 years ago, coming to Earth in order to procure an heir. In his stead, until such an heir could be returned to Odin he left the Bloodstain family to rule as stewards. The Bloodstains are ruthless demons that have persecuted and enslaved our people for nearly all of the 2000 years they have ruled. We need you to come back and take the throne Milady Summers."

Buffy scowled, "OK, don't call me that. My name is Buffy, and as frankly bizarre as your story is, I don't believe you and at this moment couldn't care less. Now I'm sorry about you're problems, but I've got plenty of my own. So if you aren't going to try and kill me, or do the general demonic, kill and hurt people while trying to end the world, have a good night." With that, she turned around and stalked off into the night.

Only to be stopped by three of the 'knights' getting directly in her path, keeping her from leaving.

"Oh, so you do want to do this. Fine, I'm feeling up to some stress relief," Buffy got down into a fighting stance. In response, the first armored figure, got into his own fighting stance and stood ready against her. The other twelve put their hands on weapons at their belts, but did not draw them or seem ready to fight in any other way. Buffy kept an eye on them anyway.

"One last warning, get out of my way," Buffy told the one that was ready to fight her. He just stared at her with an indifferent air.

"I am the Lord Orion", the scarred knight intoned calmly, introducing himself, "I am the Blademaster in the service of the Royal House of Odin. Stand against me, Lady Buffy of the Summers Bloodline, and prove your worth."

Buffy grinned, and jumped toward him, ready to clobber his head in. To her utter surprise, the man's speed seemingly surpassed her own, as he calmly dodged away, making her strike meet nothing but empty air. As she barreled past him, his leg came up, making her grind to an uncomfortable halt, her stomach against his shinbone.

Orion didn't say anything. Not a single emotion betrayed on his face as he stood there, waiting for her next move. Buffy gasped, holding her hurting stomach as she looked up at him. She growled, a feral look of anger displaying on her beautiful face. Orion remained impassive.

She charged him anew, and once again, it seemed as if he was able to read her mind, and dart out of the way without even trying. This time, it was his hand that was closed in a fist and racing toward an opening in her attack. But Buffy being the Slayer, she learned fast, and managed to deflect his attack by using both her hands. Even THAT rattled her skeletal structure. The man's power and strength were brutally massive.

As she deflected his strike, she went for him with her nimble legs, expecting a large hulk like him not to be able to dodge a strike as fast as hers. No emotion betrayed on Orion's face as he caught her strike solidly against the armor on his side, and clamped down on it with his arm, locking it. His free hand reached out, and pushed open-handed against her chest, striking her to the ground, one leg still caught in his grip.

Pushing up with both her hands, and using her caught leg for leverage, Buffy vaulted up, her free leg going for a kick to his head. His free hand came up, blocked the kick, making Buffy's hazel eyes open very wide. That speed was inhuman... !

To her surprise, Orion let her fall, and he nodded to his companions. "She'll do," he stated, turning and walking away.

"Hey! You can't walk away like that!" she screamed after him as she got to her feet. As he made no move to stop, she screamed, "I... said... STOP!"

Orion stopped, and turned. He said nothing.

"You're very rude, you know that!?" Buffy continued her tirade. "Attacking people, and then walking away without a word, that's rude you know!"

Orion remained there, not saying anything. Buffy fumed, got into a martial arts pose, then launched herself at him. Orion sighed, drew a handle off his belt. It looked like an ordinary sword-handle, only without a blade.

As Buffy continued her mad charge, Orion held the handle in front of him. Buffy's feet came to a startling halt as a red-glowing blade appeared from somewhere out of the handle. Orion remained impassive, charging at her with speed that Buffy had never seen before. And she had seen demons and vampires alike.

What she couldn't know, however, was that Orion was trained and ordained to go up against demons that would make the Earth-demons she was so familiar with look like innocent kittens. He charged her, and Buffy could feel the aura of death and darkness that hung around Orion like a thick fog as his desire for blood bubbled up within him.

Remaining frozen in her place like a dear caught in headlights, Buffy could do nothing but stare at her demise looming closer. Orion charged her... charged BY her. She felt his blade move. Couldn't see it... she had to rely on feeling it dart across her skin.

Behind her back, Orion dispelled the blade, and attached the handle to his belt. Buffy felt something give way... her jacket fell to the ground. The t-shirt underneath was undamaged.

"I could have taken your life as easily as your jacket, Your Highness. It would do you good not to forget who I am... my name is Orion, I am the one who shall be your defender upon your arrival in Odin. It is my job to protect the Royal Family, and it is my job to keep the Demons in line. Trust me, and I shall defend you. Cross me, and you will not survive, not by my hand, but by the hands of those who wish to harm you."

Buffy stopped and looked at the man that had so easily defeated her, and quickly reevaluated him. Taking a deep breath she got back into her fighting stance and intoned, "Once more." Her expression, her voice, her entire body told the Lord that she was deadly serious.

Curious at the change he noticed in her, he merely acquiesced and matched her with his own stance, his sword sheathed for the moment. Unlike the last few times however, Buffy did not recklessly charge him, instead she stared at him and then carefully took one step forward, and then waited, watching him.

_'She's learning. Good,'_ Lord Orion thought as he awaited her approach.

Five seconds later, Orion revised his thought. Buffy charged him, trying to feint going for his left side, but he could tell she was going to go for his right. She started a roundhouse punch for his head from the left, but at the last possible second switched around to a sidekick aimed at his torso. Orion was already blocking, but not even he expected her to use her foot on his blocking arm to lift herself up and bring her other leg around to kick him across the face.

Momentarily stunned, Orion took a single step back, but that was enough for the Slayer to give a full-bodied hit to the chest on her way to the ground from landing her face-kick. Due to the supernatural strength delivered with the blow, as well as the fact that he had been overconfidently unbalanced, Orion flew back, landing some ten feet out from the circle of knights, skidding another five after.

_'She learns faster than me. And by Odin I actually /_felt_/ that blow!'_ he thought. He smirked as he got up and quickly got back to the circle.

Buffy grinned to herself, still mid-air, as she saw the knight that had spoken to her as he went flying back, putting her hands out and back flipping herself back to her feet without even having touched the ground. She had expected to be attacked by the other knights, and so landed in a fighting stance, but to her infinite surprise, the other knights just continued to stand there at attention, until the first one, Lord Orion, he had introduced himself as, came back to the circle and stood before her once more.

He actually made an expression this time, one of pleasant surprise if she recalled from her memories of Oz's more familiar "expressions" when he'd still been in Sunnydale. It wasn't much, just a slight tightening around his lips and eyes, but nothing overt or obvious really.

"You have passed the First Challenge," he announced with what sounded like pride in his voice, "You are strong and you fight well. You are a warrior in my eyes, Your Highness."

Buffy squinted her eyes in distrust, but then relaxed as she realized that the fight was over. "All right," she growled, "just . . . stop with the Highness stuff for right now, all right? You've got some explaining to do, but the open street isn't the place for this type of thing, and you guys all stick out like sore thumbs. Just . . . lets get some place private so you can tell me what the hell is going on."

"At your will, Highness," Lord Orion bowed in agreement.

"What did I just tell you?" the Slayer snapped at him.

"My apologies . . . milady," Orion bowed again, and Buffy got the impression that that was the best she was going to get.

With a deep sigh, she made course for her home and said behind her, "C'mon, let's go."


	15. Highland Ninja Prologue

Title: Highland Ninja

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Naruto, unfortunately, is the creation of Masashi Kishimoto, which means that I can't really make any money off this story, but thankfully he can't sue me either. 'Immortals', of the Highlander genre were originally credited to writer Gregory Widen, who wrote the original "Highlander" film. There are more and more writers that contributed to the Highlander genre and to the mythos of the Immortals, but let's just leave it at that, as for this first part there is no Macleod Clan (so to speak), no Methos, no Watchers, no Prize. Colin Macleod is drawn from the anime film "Highlander: The Search for Vengeance" and technically he's an honorary member of the Macleod Clan, not quite the same as Duncan and Conner.

Summary: At the Valley of the End, Naruto really did die. Now he is an Immortal and must learn very quickly what that means without revealing to the Village or anyone else what he is.

Prologue:

He was wet.

He was wet and the sun was shining in his face. Either one of these facts would have been enough on their own, but both together immediately drove him to consciousness. The sudden urge to gasp in new breath and expel the water, and blood, from his lungs just made it that much more urgent.

"Hyeeeehhhhh! *gasp* KOFF! *cough* *gag* *cough* Koff, koff, GAAAHHHH! Whu...? What happened...?" he found himself asking after arching his back and almost choking on his own puke until he could roll over onto his side. When he'd finally caught his breath and had enough sense to look around, he found himself on the shore next to two giant stone statues with a waterfall between them.

There was also evidence of a battle having taken place recently.

"Oh yeah, now I remember," he muttered, his voice sounding strange to his own ears, but he blamed it on how lousy he felt. "Damn Teme, you actually were trying to kill me..."

Slowly, feeling his body ache with every movement, he got to his feet, just focusing on standing for the time being until he'd regained enough of his balance to walk without stumbling. He still stumbled a couple times, but all things considered it was a miracle he was on his feet at all. He walked back and forth a couple times, working out the stiffness and soreness he still felt in his arms and legs until he was practically jogging. Taking a deep breath, he frowned when he felt his clothes stretch tight over his body, as though they'd shrunk or something.

Looking down at himself, he saw that wasn't far from the truth. His jacket was a goner, plain and simple. The dark blue shirt he wore beneath it was torn and stretched tight against his torso, though the chest area was little more than tatters with two giant holes through it. His pants on the other hand, were the oddity. He normally had to roll them up so they didn't catch on his feet, but now they felt super tight and actually only went as far as the upper third of his calves, already unrolled.

"What the...?" he trailed off, still hearing something... off with his voice, and he was no longer feeling like a drowned rat so he couldn't just fob it off as swallowing too much water or something like that.

Quickly, he raced over to the riverbank and looked down at his reflection in the water. Then he almost fell in from the shock of what he saw. It was definitely his face, tanned complexion, 'whisker' birthmarks on both his cheeks, vivid blue eyes and short, spiky yellow-blond hair. Except the face looking back at him was that of a young man, a teenager at the youngest, someone in his early 20's at the oldest.

For starters, he remembered he used to have a cherub like face with baby-fat around his fact and neck, also a short stubborn chin and a small forehead. Now, he saw the reflection staring back at him had a strong, angular profile. The same stubborn chin, but less rounded and more pointed and strong looking. His face had grown in comparable size to the rest of him, just little things, subtle signs of physical maturity that a 12-year-old lacks. Yet is all too present in a 16-18 year old body, which, judging by his new 5'9" height, longer limbs, and bigger hands... actually, (he quickly checked) just about _everything_ was bigger now... that's roughly how old he looked now.

"How long was I out for?" he asked, examining every detail of his new body before looking at his surroundings. The battle damage was all still fresh, some of it not even an hour old! There was no way he could have been here the number of years his body seemed to have aged.

"What is going on here?"

"That's what I'd like to know," a cold voice spoke from right behind him.

He immediately spun around, his eyes widening in recognition and surprise.

"Kakashi-sensei?" he asked the thin silver-haired ninja standing there, kunai poised for attack.

Kakashi's only uncovered eye widened with it's own shock, the rest of his face covered with a mask and his Konoha headband tilted to cover his left eye. He numbly put away the kunai and stood straight, the words slipping from him before he could properly control his emotions.

"N-Na-Naruto?" Kakashi blurted out in a stunned stupor.

"What's happened to me?" the blond teenager asked the older ninja, holding out his hands for help.

"..." Kakashi took a long minute to properly compose himself and drag his emotions back under control.

"Where's Sasuke?" the jounin finally managed, once he'd taken in enough of the situation to extrapolate what he suspected.

Naruto wasn't sure whether to be disappointed, depressed, or simply understanding. He decided to go with all three, though he directed the disappointment more at himself than his sensei for choosing the traitor over the student he still had that was asking for help. He lowered his eyes in shame, his wet bangs shading his eyes and the rest of his posture spoke volumes. Kakashi sighed.

He stepped forward and put his hand comfortingly on Naruto's shoulder.

"It wasn't your fault," Kakashi told him. "And we will find out what has happened. But right now we have to focus on the mission at hand. Where's Sasuke? What happened?"

Naruto let out a sigh and nodded, quickly composing himself as a ninja of Konoha on a mission, because that's exactly what he was. He quickly, using as few words as possible, gave a full report to his Jounin Sensei, starting with when he and the others had left the Konoha Gate, leaving out the battle details and just mentioning when they encountered the enemy and when one of them had to stay behind. Finally he went on to say that he chased Sasuke, who had been released from that barrel they'd been keeping him in, here to this valley and they talked for a few minutes, Sasuke attacking him a number of times while Naruto just tried to get him to stand down. Finally, Sasuke transformed fully and Naruto channeled enough of the Kyuubi's chakra that it seemed to flow over him like a cloak of armor and they each threw one last Chidori/Rasengan, respectively, at each other. Naruto admitted to shifting his target at the last second from mid-torso to a swipe across Sasuke's headband. He also mentioned, after Kakashi prompting him for the _full_ report, that Sasuke's aim did not shift and pierced him through the heart.

This took no longer than five minutes, not even that long as Naruto often shortened the terms for what actually happened, but Kakashi got the picture nevertheless. Meanwhile, Pakkun, Kakashi's dog-summons, had been checking all over the area, even up on the cliff-face and the forest on both sides of the river. Finally, the little brown dog came back to his summoner and told him the bad news.

"It's no good Kakashi," the small bulldog shook its head, "The rain washed away all the scents leading to and away from here. There's still some chakra lingering in the air, but even that's almost gone, and only around the waterfall itself. Everywhere else... He's gone, Kakashi. I'm sorry."

"..." Kakashi sighed, nodding his head once. "It's not your fault either, Pakkun. I... I was too late. Again. Come on, Naruto. There's nothing more we can do here."

"But Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto immediately protested. "I only need a few more minutes rest. With you and Pakkun here now... The mission's not over yet! We can still bring Sasuke back! I promised Sakura-chan!"

Kakashi looked his student in the eye, then shrugged.

"Fine, I'll look for him myself if I have to—!" he turned away and was suddenly cut off by a blow to the back of the head. Kakashi was already there underneath him, lifting the now much larger boy onto his back.

"I don't know if you'll ever forgive me for all the wrong I've done to you, Naruto," Kakashi whispered as he and Pakkun leapt into the trees, heading back towards Konoha, "Sasuke's gone. I had thought that I might be able to redeem myself if I trained him to be a strong ninja. I was wrong. I'm... sorry...."

A lone tear fell from beneath the jounin's headband, though his right eye was dry as bone.

Only ten miles away, right at that moment, a heavily injured and weakened, soaking wet Uchiha Sasuke, stumbled across the border between Fire and Rice Countries, following the call from the tingling mark on his neck, drawing him to the one that would give him power. The power to avenge his clan. The power to kill a certain man.

The thirteen-year-old boy paused, briefly looking back the way he'd come, where he'd just left the one he'd called his closest friend to die. He was still living when he'd climbed out of that valley in the rain, and then there was that flash of lightning just before he'd gotten out of sight and then the crimson flash and cries of death, but seeing as he did not suddenly gain the Magenkyo Sharingan, he knew that Naruto was still alive. He couldn't explain it, but he knew it just the same.

He turned back forward and continued to stumble along, following the urges of the Cursed Seal to the lair of the one that had made it, Orochimaru, the Snake Sannin.

TBC...?


	16. GODS Part 2

The Real world

"Xander! Xander! Wake up!" Willow was saying, gently shaking her dark haired friend's shoulders.

"Huh?! What!" Xander started awake as soon as he felt the pulling sensation stop. He blinked and looked around confusedly for a couple of seconds before remembering that he was at Buffy's house, for a sleepover. It was morning. Early morning.

"Geez, what time is it?" Xander asked, stifling a yawn.

"Seven," Willow said cheerily before getting up and going to the kitchen to get some of the breakfast Mrs. Summers was making.

Xander stared after the bubbly redhead for a moment, vaguely remembering _her_ dream that he had accidentally walked in on. Then he shook he head, still feeling very tired, and noticed Buffy in much the same mood and form that he was.

"Did anyone tell her that it's Saturday?" he asked the tussled blonde. She just numbly shook her head to the negative before finally struggling to her feet from the floor and her sleeping bag.

"Come on Xan," Buffy said dully, sounding and looking as tired as she really was, "let's go make sure she doesn't get into the coffee."

Xander chuckled, and then decided that he really didn't want to go back to sleep anyway, no matter how tired he still was. "Good idea. Wills has natural caffeine in her blood anyway. And I don't really feel like going back to sleep anyway. Weird dreams."

As soon as he said that, Buffy spun on him with a confusing look on her face that, when he noticed, forced him to ask, "What?"

"Nothing," the Slayer said carefully. "It's just…I had some pretty weird dreams too. Must have been coincidence or something."

"Yeah," Xander muttered after she left for the kitchen, recalling his time in the Slayer's dream. "Or something."

******

The next night

Typical Saturday. Right down to the vid-fest that the Slayerettes, (as Willow had dubbed them), had all afternoon, much to Mrs. Summers' annoyance, and the snack scarfing. Even the going out an hour after sunset with Buffy, loaded up with crosses, holy water, and wooden stakes and looking for vampires. Of course once they found any, Xander and Willow pretty much hung back and let Buffy do all the work. All in all it was your typical Saturday.

Up until it was time to go to bed. Given that it was the weekend, Mrs. Summers had agreed that he and Willow could spend both Friday and Saturday nights with Buffy, but according to "Buffy's law", this time she got the couch. Xander didn't argue.

In fact he was trying everything short of electrocuting himself to stay awake for another hour longer. He remembered his dreams. _Vividly_. And on even the off chance that he would dream walk again, or meet those two claiming to be gods…

"Come on Xander, you've had enough caffeine for tonight, let's go to sleep," Willow said from her sleeping bag on the floor. Xander was sitting in a stiff chair borrowed from the dining room, drinking another coke. Five of the six-pack lay empty around his feet.

"Nah, I think I'll stay up for a little bit longer. Make sure no vamps get invited inside," Xander said nervously, his legs jumping up and down.

"Xan, as much as I like you as one of my best friends, you are starting to push this Slayer's limit. Go. To. Sleep." Buffy said, trying to do the same on the large and comfortable couch.

Xander, too agitated to realize what he was saying, snapped quietly, "Oh and I'm sure you'd just love to get back to that cavern and whatever other prophetic dreams you have so I can rescue you from them again."

"What?" Buffy snapped back, looking up with a wild look in her eye.

Too late, Xander's head snapped up as he realized what he'd just said. _Oh god_, he thought in absolute horror. Thinking quick, he said the first thing that came to his mind. "I have to go to the bathroom," and with that he disappeared up the stairs faster than Buffy herself could move. The two girls shared a concerned look before Willow reached and turned off the lights and they snuggled down to rest. Except one of them was not drifting as she usually did at night.

Upstairs in the bathroom, Xander was leaning over the sink, staring his reflection in the eyes again. He wasn't liking what he was seeing. The eyes, they had flawless, no veins, no redness, no shadow or grayness on them at all. The brown irises, he now realized as he looked at them, were uniform. Most people had irises that looked like craters on the moon, or something. His, had uniform, identical and evenly spaced _lines_ in them, like the spokes of a wagon wheel. He couldn't really notice anything unique about the pupils, but he knew that they were different from everybody else's too.

Xander tried splashing his face several times, but every time he looked back in the mirror, he saw the same thing, the same _perfection_ in his eyes. An inhuman perfection. They weren't normal. And…if those two, Kes and Ron, were right…he wasn't normal.

Xander took a deep breath, leaning back against the wall and closed his eyes. That's when he noticed that he hadn't turned the lights on in the bathroom when he came in. His eyes snapped open and he looked around. As far as he could tell not only were the lights on, but they were bright as well. Then he looked at the bulbs themselves. He felt pale as he saw that they were indeed, off.

Gulping, and moving slowly, as though it were about to bite him, Xander's hand reached for the light switch, and flipped it on. He was still staring straight at the lights when they came on, full force. But what bothered him was not that. It was that he felt no pain or need to squint when they did.

He looked around the room. It did seem a bit brighter, but more than that. Clearer. As though he were seeing everything from a thousand different pictures, and then taking the best qualities of each of those pictures to see. Everything was in such vivid focus, and so bright that he knew it was better than normal seeing. He just didn't know how he was doing it.

Then, as he looked back at the lights, after looking at everything around the small bathroom, he noticed that a white haze was beginning to form at the edges of his enhanced vision, and _that's_ when he noticed the pain. "Ahh!" he cried as the pain became too much and the white haze now completely filled his vision.

He reached blindly, through his pain, for the light switch and turned it off. Immediately the pain lessened and he tried opening his eyes. There was no more pain, but all he saw was darkness. Frowning, Xander flipped the switch back on, but the darkness stayed.

Swallowing a dry mouth, his breathing coming in deeper quantities, Xander waved his hand in front of his face a couple times, because even in the shallow darkness of the solid night, which was a lot worse than the darkness of an in-home bathroom, equipped with a nightlight, he could see his own hand in front of his face. He couldn't even see that, with the lights fully on.

"Oh gawd, I'm blind!" he cried to himself.

The moment he said that though, something almost miraculous, but more confusing than anything, happened. He saw…_something_. It had no color, but it was like a wave of energy that fell against something and in hitting it, highlighted it fully so that he could see it and several things around it.

"What the—" There it was again! But it only seemed to happen when he spoke.

Xander took a step towards the toilet, so he could sit down, his feet making soft thuds as the hit the tiled floor. Xander, his eyes still open, paused. Then he raised and dropped his foot again, making another thud. The…energy that he was seeing, it happened when he made sounds. It was less intense, but it happened and even seemed to originate around his footfalls. Xander then raise his foot higher and slammed it to the floor. A much bigger wave of the energy highlighted the entire room this time.

Xander raised his hand and waved it in front of his face again, slower this time. There! He could see it. Barely against the blackness, but he could see it. The sound of his hand moving through the air hit his ears, and he could feel the air being displaced against his face. Xander realized with a start that he was _seeing_ sound waves!

And then, just like that, his sight snapped back to normal. As though his eyes had just been waiting for him to come to that correct conclusion. He was left blinking at the surreality of it for a couple of moments before he finally noticed that he was indeed seeing normally again, as the lights were on, but nothing was crystal clear, nor were the shadows lit up like it was noon.

Xander sighed, rubbing his face one final time, and turned out the lights, and made his way back down stairs. He had paused briefly when he realized that, even though his eyesight was still working, he could still see perfectly in the darkness as though the lights were still on. He decided to let it go, and now, given that he had his proof, he was ready to talk to those two about what was going on.

Moving as quietly as he could, Xander got into his sleeping bag, and lay there for a couple of moments, before he ultimately decided that he wanted more answers than questions, and he could only find answers in his dreams it seemed, and as the night before, upon making the decision to, sleep came instantaneously.

The Inbetween

The gray mists once again loomed before Xander. Just to be sure, he turned around to see what was behind him. If anything, it was worse than the continuous wars and battles fought in his dreams of the past few nights. He was sitting alone at a desk in the middle of the Bronze, with about a gazillion large and thick textbooks piled around him, and he was reading each one, one page at a time. And they were all labeled Trigonometry!

He could not have stepped into the Inbetween faster, again feeling that same sense of accomplishment as he did it. Xander didn't have to wait long or walk very far before Kes and Ron showed up, both in the same outfits he had first seen them in.

He didn't waste any time as soon as they saw each other, Xander said to the two of them, "All right, if you want an apology for leaving last night, forget it! You do not drop a bomb shell on a guy in a very weird position of dream walking like you two being gods, or even me being one of you! So do not expect an apology."

"We don't Xander," Kes said carefully. "In fact, if anything, we, at least I do, understand what you're going through a lot better than Ron, owe you an apology."

"OK," Xander nodded at Kes's apology, accepting it. "Now what the hell is the deal here, and if I just hit the money with that hell-word…"

"We have nothing to do with that vile place, and neither does this place," Ron practically growled. Then he calmed himself. "I'm sorry. It's just…"

"Bad memories?" Xander finished for him. Ron just nodded. Xander nodded back at him and sighed. "All right, what is the story. I promise not to panic, because after the deal with my eyes earlier, I think I can handle just about anything."

"What deal with your eyes earlier?" Kes asked.

Xander shrugged. "Well, first I had like this night-vision thing going on, and then everything was like super-uber-ultra clear, ya know? Then, when I went blind, I _saw_ sound waves. So like I said, I think I can handle whatever you guys have got to say."

"Such changes are normal," Ron said to the teenager easily. "You'll also notice yourself getting more fit and perhaps even a bit stronger over the next few days. Right after an Awakening, all of your human powers reach their maximum within a week. For most it's a week anyway. Some actually receive them sooner."

"_Human_ powers?" Xander asked. "Humans don't have powers! They have hands and feet, and mouths to eat twinkies with."

Kes laughed, while Ron just smiled easily down at the dark haired youth.

"But the human body has great potential. It takes great skill for any ordinary human to be able to tap into, let alone fully reach that potential. We, as gods, don't need skill. Our bodies are our vessels, and our spirits make our vessels perfect. Literally. You aren't eighteen yet, are you?" Ron suddenly asked.

"Uh…no, sixteen, why?" Ron just smiled broadly.

"Good, because you still have some…growing to do, as a boy into a man, if you understand what I mean." Ron gave him that look all guys give other guys when talking about what he was talking about.

Xander blinked. "You serious?"

Ron just smiled bigger and nodded. Xander blinked again, and asked, "How big?" Ron's smile could not have gotten any bigger if all of physics were screwed up and he was made of elastic.

"All right you two, enough with the macho sexism!" Kes shouted, feeling thoroughly disgusted.

"What…else can I expect from my human powers?" Xander asked, once he had gotten over the shock of Ron's revelation.

"Increased senses, each one of your senses can now make up for the other five, including taste. You also get the benefits of the mind, without training. Dream walking is just the first and easiest. You can also hear the unguarded thoughts of those around you, and maybe even be able to move some things just by thinking about it. Nothing big. We're talking human powers here, not supernatural. You'll also be able to push your body harder and farther than anything else on the planet, save another of us. Including most demons." Ron explained.

"Like vampires?" Xander asked.

"How do you know about them?" Kes asked. She was surprised because she had never seen a real vampire or demon until after she had Awakened herself.

Xander just shrugged. "I know the Slayer. She's saved me and my best friend from vamps several times, not to mention that I live on the Hellmouth and seeing a vamp is like seeing dog shit in any other town."

Ron was now the one who was shocked. "You…live on the Hellmouth?" he asked, his voice stunned. Xander just nodded, his face grim.

"So," he said after a tense silence, "what else, other than human powers, have I got to look forward to with this approaching godhood of mine?"

Ron shook his head. "I'm sorry Xander, we've mislead you a bit. This is not _god__hood_. This is what you are. Gods are a species, same as some demons are, or there are different kinds of birds. Some are raptors, others are just pigeons. We're the Raptors to humanities pigeons."

Xander nodded. "OK, why don't you just go ahead and tell me the whole story already."

"We'll start with your dreams, the ones you say you've been having the past few nights," Kes began.

"Yeah, and they were loads better than the one that was starting back there," Xander muttered to himself, looking back over his shoulder at where he'd been.

"What was that?" Kes asked.

"Nothing," Xander said a bit too quickly. Kes just glared at him, but moved on.

"Your dreams Xander," Kes began, "are images of the past. True images. This world did not begin, as some believe, as a paradise. It was…"

"Overrun with demons, who made it there home, their hell, blah, blah, blah, I've heard this much before. It's how I was introduced to demons in the first place, well, after my first vamp attack that is." Xander interrupted. Kes was again surprised, but Ron motioned for her to continue.

"Anyway, the world was ruled by two major forces. What we call the Olders. The Old Ones, demons, pure evil and basically put, Fallen Angels as they were simply outcast of the other force. The Old Gods as we call them. The Gods were the ones that supported creation and even enhanced it as much as they could. They were not the ones who created everything though. Even they, and we as well, knew that there was only one Creator, and only the most foolish of any of us, whether we or the Olders, would ever dream of coveting the Creator's power."

"So…God is real?" Xander asked for clarification.

Both of them nodded somberly and seriously. "God is very real Xander, but the Creator does not conform to the ideas of male, female, or even human. God is the Creator, pure and simple. Neither, he, nor she, nor anything beyond the loving Creator that loves everything, whether destroyer, evil, good, savior or otherwise." Ron answered Xander's question.

"Then the war started," Kes said, brining the discussion back to her. "The Old Ones wanted back the power they had when they were part of the Old Gods, but they still wanted to destroy and torment and revel in the destructive use of their powers. The Old Gods fought them. Basically a civil war."

"In the midst of their conflict, three possibilities came into existence. Humans. Champions. And Us. Champions are people like, from what I've heard, the Slayer, witches, supernatural beings that were born with gifts that destiny, and not some higher power, which was _only_ the Olders back then, gave them that were lifted to higher than normal humanity."

"And us?" Xander asked apprehensively.

"If the Champions are to be the protectors of humanity, then we are the Guardians, the _guides_ to it," Ron said, taking a step forward. "We hold a portion of the power that the Old Gods themselves held, but all contained inside a human body. We, as gods, have sworn _never_ to usurp our power to control and dominate humanity as a whole. Though there are some that have…er, erhrm!"

"He means harems," Kes said disgustedly. Xander's eyes went wide.

"Well, for lack of a better term, yes. But I do not approve, nor do I partake in such actions!" Ron defended himself. "And besides, its made sure that those that do take…uh, such followers, that the people choose of their own, _unaltered_ free will to submit their own will to one of us."

"Whoa, you mean I like have mind control now?" Xander squeaked. Kes giggled and Ron looked embarrassed.

"It's part of your human powers, but it is one of the few that require _actual_ skill to use, let alone master." Ron answered. "Because you can sometimes hear the thoughts of others, it is only natural that it would be possible for them to hear yours. Only, because they are unaware of the ability, they think that your thoughts are their own. Enough time and planting the right thoughts at the right time, it is very easy to turn another person into your mind slave. Some things though, such as their sense of person or free will itself, that cannot be changed or influenced. Because _that_ has to do with their soul, and only the Creator can do anything with one's soul."

"And demons," Xander muttered.

Ron shook his head. "That is why the Old Ones rebelled and started the civil war. _Only_ the creator can control or dictate a soul to change its essence. The Old Ones sought to control this power, have this power over souls. The best that they can do is steal a soul's energy, or entrap it. The soul itself cannot be changed. Only taken and used. Or replaced with a demon spirit, which is the case with most vampires."

"What about the Old Gods? Or us?" Xander asked, now beginning to accept this idea that he really was one of these people, now that he saw what they were about.

"Only the Creator has power over souls. We have power and dominion over other things." Ron shrugged. "For a while it was thought that we were children of humans and Angels, real angels, who because of the Creator have dominion over ALL the Earth. All of it Xander. That was quickly dispelled as the truth, when we entered the civil war between the Olders, on the side of mortal animals. Humans and Champions."

"We have greater power than Champions Xander," Kes explained, "not because of our human powers, because their supernatural powers far outclass us in that regard. But because of our _Extra_ powers. That which truly makes us gods."

"Potentially, we, or a single one of us, in a human body, has the total power of a single Old God. That is incorrect," Ron inserted.

"We have more," Kes said flatly. Xander just stood there, staring, waiting.

"We are immortal from the moment that we Awaken, before that, we are entirely human, and there is no way to tell if someone can become what we are." Ron expanded. "Unlike the Champions, we do not tap into a source or the realm of the supernatural for our gifts, but we tap into something that is infinitely more volatile. Naturally, we get our own powers from it, but not since the days of the war, several millennia ago, have we _purposely_ tapped _fully_ into it. Therefore, each one of us has a different power for emphasis. Some have greater physical abilities beyond anything that a Champion, even a Slayer, could ever have. Others have a surrealistic level of psychic abilities and a multitude of other things no one can even imagine."

"OK, so first, why doesn't anyone tap into this…whatever it is, so everybody can be even?" Xander asked.

"Too dangerous. It's not even known how to do that anymore. The last one of our kind that did know how to do that died over five thousand years ago." Ron answered.

"But…you just said we're immortal," Xander pointed out.

"We can be killed Xander," Kes said sadly. "By others of our kind."

Xander looked back and forth between Ron and Kes for a whole minute before finally saying in a no-nonsense voice, "I think you had better tell me everything, meaning the worst of the bad news, right now."

"Back to the story," Kes said, "we won. The Old Gods agreed, for creation's sake, to leave and never return, so long as the Old Ones didn't. And our ancestors, and many of their allies, drove the Old Ones to the dimension that is now Hell. The Creator reinforced the seals between the real world, Earth, and Hell. Which I think is the final peg that got the Old Gods thrown out."

"So what's the deal with the Hellmouth?" Xander had to exclaim.

"They cheated," Ron and Kes said together.

"You've heard the story about the first vampire, right?" Ron asked. Xander nodded. "That's how. Hellmouths, yes, there is more than one, are like roots that still connect the Old Ones to the Earth Realm. It, believe it or not, is what actually keeps the Old Ones mortal. In Hell, they and all demons, are as immortal as the Old Gods are wherever they spend their time. In order to keep the Hellmouth open, or at least attached to Earth, a single demon, actually an Old One, has to agree to be mortal. In Hell. But when their natural lifespan is several thousands of years, that's more of a problem than it normally would be."

"Still with you," Xander said.

"After the war, things changed. With no more enemy to fight, we, and the Champions, were no longer in charge. Humanity would rule the world. At first there wasn't a problem with it. For the first thousand years, paradise was achieved." Ron said.

"But," Xander inserted.

"Then the dissidents came," Ron nodded at Xander's insertion.

"We actually aren't all called 'gods' Xander," Kes explained. "Actually, we don't know exactly _what_ we are, unlike humanity. Some of us have claimed to be, and were actually worshiped as gods, but we aren't. And with recent theories of evolution, it got some of us thinking."

"Thinking about what?" Xander asked.

"A different name for us, other than only the two." Ron answered. "There are two groups of our species, Xander. One more or less good, or at the very least not evil, and then the evil group. The former calls themselves gods, simply because that's what we've always been called, even by the humans that we protect. It isn't an ego thing, well for most it isn't, rather it's a tradition thing. The second group, those that want to either ally themselves with the Olders or take over the world themselves, we call them _Warlords_."

"Warlords?" Xander repeated, a dumb look on his face.

Ron nodded. "Ever since the End of the Beginning…the uh, that's what we call the end of the civil war between the Olders, after the thousand years of peace, of paradise…the warlords split from the gods, and ever since there has always been the two. Gods and warlords, one protecting humanity from the other, the one trying to take over the world or even be insane enough to ally themselves with one of the Olders and try to start the war again, just so "we" could be in charge again. It's believed by some that were the Old Ones and the Old Gods to return to Earth, humanity would fall and the gods, and warlords, would have to rise to protect them again, and humanity would see us as saviors, rather than freaks or monsters. We, of course, know better. Humanity would never accept our help except as weapons that _they_ would control. They would rather fight the demons themselves than accept the burden of accepting our help again."

"OK, you're losing me here," Xander stopped them. "Go back to the looking for a new name thing."

"We are two races Xander," Kes answered him, "but _one_ species. Some have taken to calling us _Enhanced_."

"But only those born within the last century," Ron said gruffly. Xander arched an eyebrow.

Kes smiled. "We're both older than we look Xander. Actually, this is not the way we look at all. I am 296 years old. Ron here, is one of the old farts. He's over 3000 years old!" Xander blinked and just stared. Then he quelled whatever reaction he was going to give, took a deep breath and let it out nice and slow.

"You do know I'm only 16 years old, right?" Xander wanted to make sure. Both smiled at him and nodded.

"Good news is you won't look 16 forever. Actually, you'll look 21 forever. When your body has fully matured, that's when your physical age freezes. But don't worry, that takes the normal amount of time," Kes assured him.

Once Xander had gotten over the whole immortal thing, for the moment, he turned back to the worst part. "OK, tell me what you can about these warlord creeps, cause I get the feeling that they can actually kill me if they want to."

"They can," Ron said solemnly. "But you can also kill them. And don't worry about the whole 'No Kill' commandment, these bastards, whichever ones you may or may not encounter, are as bad as any demon or vampire, and more than likely worse."

"What's the catch?" Xander asked.

Kes didn't even hesitate, "Decapitation. Only way, and only by your hand or caused by your action. Even if that action would be for them to run upon someone else's blade and _they_ decapitate them. But don't worry. Alliance with an Old One or not, no Enhanced would want to go near a Hellmouth, from what I understand of it."

"Hey, it's a mystical convergence, it MIGHT happen!" Xander shouted back at her.

Kes just shrugged.

"If you actually do come across a warlord, and trust me, you'll know, just walk the other way and the next time you dream, just come here and call for either me or Kes. We can always hear another of our kind summon us from the Inbetween, whether we are asleep or even if we are awake. And I assure you my friend, Kes and I will always answer your summons. You can view it as sort of a volunteer responsibility marker. We are the first gods that you encountered after you awoke, and it's always been that newbies are most comfortable with the first gods that they encounter."

"OK, I get that, and frankly, I appreciate it as well. Was the whole warlord thing the worst of the worst?" Both of them nodded. "Cool. Now back to this powers thing, you never exactly explained what it was that we, or to be specific, _I_ could do beyond the human powers."

"Nobody really knows where the energy or powers comes from," Kes answered him. "It's just always been that after an Enhanced is awakened, once their human powers have matured, they develop a whole new power with unknown potential that we call '_special skill_'."

"Each special skill is unique to the…Enhanced that has it," Ron took up the explanation, hesitating on the use of the "modern" term for their species. "The special skill can range in category from energy, force, ultra-physical, elemental, psychics, vision, sensory, master element…the list goes on and on. It's almost endless really."

"You said earlier that during the…war, that our kind tapped into something that gave us _more_ power than the Old Gods and the Old Ones combined," Xander pointed out.

Ron nodded. "During the war, just before we got involved in it, there was a man, a god. He was the first of us to actually fully tap whatever it is that gives us our special skills. It gave him _every_ special skill that existed, exists, or probably ever will exist. And not just to use, but to use to each and every one's full potential. That is why we have more power than even the Olders. But again, nobody has done that in…since before the End of the Beginning."

Xander nodded, understanding the implications, as well as the dangers of what his life now involved. Speaking of which…

"Uh, not to sound like a newbie and all, but…now what?" Xander asked.

"Now, its up to you, mostly," Ron answered cryptically.

Kes hit the too big man in the gut with the edge of her elbow, making the blonde giant wince in pain. "What Ron means Xander," Kes said in a tone of annoyance, "is that your life is still your own. Just…now you are aware of your destiny as a god…that is if you choose to be a god."

Xander's eyebrows went up and he immediately asked, "You mean there's a way for me to turn down the whole package? Powers, immortality…nightmares?"

"They're visions you…" Ron said angrily before Kes stopped him.

"You can choose to be either god…or warlord. But no Xander, you cannot stop being an Enhanced. And Ron is right. Your dreams are not nightmares. They are visions of your heritage. Have you actually experienced another of the same dreams…since you met us?"

Xander started to say yes, but then he thought about it, and realized that he hadn't and numbly shook his head no to answer Kes's question. "So," he said finally after a long silence, "my only choice is good or evil, huh? Not really much of a choice for a guy that's in love with the Slayer."

"What is it with Slayer's being hot babes anyway?" Ron asked the universe. Xander chuckled, Kes just looked annoyed.

"All right, yes, I'm going to be a god. Now," Xander took a deep breath, only just understanding what he had agreed to, "what exactly do I have to do to prepare or whatever? How do I learn to use my powers? Can I use them in public without worrying about some Men In Black coming to take me away in the middle of the night? And what happens if I meet one of these warlords?"

"Whoa there, slow down," Ron waved his hands. "First, NO!" Both Xander and Kes jumped at the force that the older god had used. "You cannot use anything resembling powers in public. Even on the Hellmouth, where I think the official rule for anyone living there more than a year is "deny, deny, deny". Second, each god…each Enhanced is unique. Basically you teach yourself. Everybody's powers, both human and Special developed at their own pace. There are more or less some similar standards, but mostly its just pick it up as you go. Look, don't worry about it. You've got centuries! Just live your life the way you were before, and when you find a new power, learn how to use it to the best of your ability. If you need help, then Kes, I, or anyone else you might meet here in the Inbetween can give you some pointers if you ask."

"And warlords? I live on the Hellmouth for crying out loud!" Xander shouted at them.

"You're a newbie. Not even worth a blip on anybody's radar, except now mine and Kes's. Nobody is going to even want to bother with you, even if you walk right into them. And the chances of running into a warlord without actively looking for one are so astronomical that it would take even the best of us a whole week to figure out that figure. And normally we can do calculations up to the trillions in seconds." Ron tried to ease Xander's worries.

"But what **if**?" Xander asked, emphasizing each syllable.

Ron sighed, sagging his shoulders. "The only thing you have to worry about is if a warlord challenges you to a duel. Then…its fight to the finish, and _anything_ goes. Anything, short of outside interference that is. Outside interference meaning another of our kind. Warlords could send a pack of demons after you, after declaring a challenge, and then once you're softened up come in for the kill. But the good news is that you can do the same thing. You could send your own hoard of vampires or other demons to meet those that the warlord sent in."

"Yeah, but I don't exactly associate in the "friendly" circles with demons or vampires," Xander sarcastically shot back.

Ron just shrugged and shot back at him, "So you could control a pack of vampires and do the same thing. Of course you have to learn how to do that first. Believe it or not, controlling a demon, even one inhabiting a human body, is incredibly easier than controlling a real human. Has to do with the soul thing. Demons don't have souls, so we, and the Olders, have power over them too."

Xander blinked. "Cool. I…don't suppose that you or Kes would be willing to help me out, just in case. I mean, in an advice type deal. Or even let me borrow your demon hoard?"

Kes and Ron laughed at the pleading face Xander displayed. "Well, since you're the one on the Hellmouth, I think we might be the ones asking you that in a few years," Ron said between laughs.

"Don't worry Xander," Kes assured her new friend, "Ron, however over confidant, is right about the warlords. Unless they've got something big planned, they just try and stay out of sight. Just like we do. Speaking from experience, you do not want people you can't trust with this secret. I was one of the "witches" burned during the Salem Witch Trials. All of my accusers were people that I thought I could trust not only with my secret, but my life. So…for right now, until you can learn more about your powers to protect yourself, I would advise you not to tell anyone. Not even the Slayer or your closest friends."

Xander considered, and almost chucked what Kes was saying out the window. Then he remembered Amy and her mother, and how Giles and Buffy were so dedicated to punishing Amy, even though it was really Amy's mother that did the wrong, and it was deserved. But given the wrong info, not to mention a way worse situation, he feared that they would turn on him, or even worse, he would turn on them with uncontrolled powers.

Sighing with the weight of the decision, Xander's shoulders slumped. "Fine. But just until I figure out whatever the hell my "special skill" is gonna be. Besides, by then I should have full control of my powers, right?"

Ron nodded, silently glad over the heavy decision his young friend had just made, and supportive of how he was handling everything. Kes smiled at the dark haired youth, also glad for him. "Right," she answered him. "But again, it's going to take a while for that to even show up Xander," Kes reminded him. Xander just nodded absently.

"So, I say again, now what?"

"Well, if you want, we can show you around some parts of the Inbetween. Most of it is the same, but if you know how, you can identify where dream doors are, how to enter them, and maybe even who is having the dream. It would be better than you stumbling around on your own for the first while anyway," Kes offered.

Xander smiled, nodding, "Thanks. I think I'd like that. Certainly in how to figure out how to see the…dream doors did you call them?" Kes nodded.

"Hunh. So…how do I see them?"

"Here," Kes stepped forward, walking to just beside Xander. "First, clear your mind, as difficult as it is, so that you are calm, and not focused on any one thing. Then, _RELAX_. That's the first rule to using and learning your powers. They're no good to you if they are out of control, because you can't keep your cool and use them the right way. It'll come to you. Believe it or not, this is all second nature to you. All of it. You just have to become consciously aware of it."

Xander took a deep breath, nodding as he focused on not focusing on anything. Pretty soon he became aware of something. Something he hadn't noticed because he was moving too fast to see it. Pathways. Doors. Walls. They were all around him, yet weren't at the same time. Heck, according to what he was aware of now, he was standing half in and half out of a "wall" right now.

"Whoa!" Xander exclaimed, jumping out of the wall so he was in the middle of the "hall" the three of them were in.

"Was wondering when you were going to notice that," Ron smirked. Xander just shot him a look.

"OK, how do I identify what's what? I mean, what do the walls and the…pathways mean?" Xander asked, pointing around them to emphasis his question.

"The walls are the borders of a person's "dream world"," Kes answered, "The pathways are different. Some of them are just the spaces in between separate dream worlds, others are paths _to_ dreams, others away from them. Don't even think of trying to map any of it, it's always changing, according to the dreams and desires of the people dreaming. Even we affect it in that degree."

"OK, but I was just inside a wall, but I wasn't in that person's dream, why?" Xander asked.

"The only way to enter a dream is through the door, which is much more difficult to get into than you might think. The door isn't really anything that can be explained with modern science, but some of us believe that once, maybe even during the war of the Beginning, humans were mentally connected to one another. Sort of like the Borg on that Star Trek Next Generation thing, but with everyone having their own free will." Ron explained.

Kes picked it up from there, "It's thought that those doors were once interlinked in the Inbetween, through either umbilicals or directly to another's dream world, which created the link between the humans."

"Obviously, that connection no longer exists, but its still possible for things like shared dreaming or linked minds to happen," Ron finished.

"Why is it so hard to get through a door? I mean I literally stumbled into my two friends' dreams last night." Xander pointed out.

"How long have you known your friends?" Kes asked.

"I've known Willow, the first friend, all our lives. Well mostly anyway. Buffy, well we just met, but I got into her dreams too. Although it was a bit more difficult than getting into Willow's. Something, I think, had to unlock before I was let in."

Kes nodded. "Friends, close friends, usually have more shared dreams than not, because of the level of trust, and perhaps even love between them. This Willow's mental defenses obviously felt you were no threat, and maybe even welcomed into the dream. And while a normal human's defenses aren't as powerful as ours, or even a champion's, they're enough to give one of us pause."

"Well, like I said, I literally stumbled into Willow's. Buffy's however, like I said, I think something had to unlock. I felt some kind of energy go through the barrier before it opened. Oh, and Buffy is the Slayer that I know." Xander added.

At that, both Ron and Kes started, and generally just looked too shocked for words. "What?" Xander asked, worried.

"You-you-you…you entered a _Champion's_ dream?!" Ron exclaimed. Xander shrugged, not knowing what to say.

"Xander," Kes started to explain, "Champions, you remember, are the ones that are empowered by the supernatural. Supernatural energy is nothing to laugh about. It also protects them in their dreams. No attempt to force their way into a protected Champion's dreams has ever been successful. Ever. The only way that you could have gotten into her dreams was if she either invited you in, or…"

"Or what?"

"Or the supernatural energy protecting her was destroyed. That's the only other way."

Xander stopped, then frowned. "OK, but why would Buffy _invite_ me into her dreams…" then he stopped. "Well there was the kiss, and I did kinda save her from being killed by that pasty faced demon in her dream…oh, I meant to ask about that, is it a bad thing if you interfere in a prophetic dream?"

Kes looked to Ron, who shrugged. "Never had any experience with it myself, but the only harm that would come of it is that the message the dream was trying to deliver gets lost in your interference. I wouldn't make a habit of it if I were you."

"What makes you sure that she invited you in?" Kes asked.

Xander stared at the blue haired woman/girl. "Like I said, an energy went through the barrier to unlock it before I went in. Then, after she threw me out, the energy went back up. And if the supernatural force that's protecting her was destroyed, then we're all in trouble, cause like I said, she's the Slayer."

"Good point." Kes admitted.

Suddenly, a shrill shriek went through the local Inbetween. _"XANDUUUURRRRRR!"_

Xander's eyes went wide as he recognized the voice behind the cry. "Willow," he hissed to himself before a new, red bordered with gold path flared out before him, leading straight to a bright green door with red trim in the distance. Xander did not hesitate as he began running as fast as he could, further motivated when Willow's shout was repeated, and without even realizing it, his form began to blur, as when he had raced to save Buffy from the Master.

Kes and Ron stared in shock at what Xander had just done. "He just did that on instinct," Kes pointed out to the elder. Ron just nodded, before saying, "Come on, he might need some help."

Kes shook her head in resignation before muttering to herself, "Boyscouts," and vanishing in her own blurred form after Xander and Ron.

_

To Be Continued...?


	17. Grayskull

Title: Grayskull

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:Naruto is Masashi Kishimoto's. He-Man is Mattel's. The following fusion of the two is mine and I don't charge money to let people read it, so don't bother suing me, cause I have no money. Like everybody else.

Summary:Crazy idea. During the Time gap, Naruto comes across an old castle, where he finds an old sword and learns of the Power of Grayskull...

AN: I'm starting this off in my 'Fantasies' to judge how people feel about it. If, heavy _heavy **heavy HEAVY**_ emphasis on **_*IF*_** I take this from 'Fantasies' and make it it's own stand-alone story, it needs to be unbelievably, incredibly, uncannily popular that people are constantly begging me for more and to make it it's own story. And not just the same people either. : ) Otherwise, this and any and all sequels stay in 'Fantasies'. Just wanted to make that clear for any people that have questions like that. Please review or contact me at ..

Story:

Naruto was having a nightmare. Or maybe it was a dream? He couldn't tell, he just knew that there was a lot of fighting going on in his head as he struggled to wake up.

He saw this really old castle, shaped like a human skull with battlements all around it and a drawbridge where the jaw was supposed to be. Then there was a flash, of steel striking steel. Another vantage point of the same skull castle, only now Naruto could tell it was made out of gray stone, not human bone. More flashes, weapons clashing, sounds now to accompany what his mind had already interpreted as a battle. He was right in front of the castle right now, looking up into the empty, dark, soulless windows that looked like eye-sockets. The jaw bridge started to lower...

"NYYEAAAHHHH!" Naruto screamed himself awake. He was getting really tired of waking up to the same dream every night for the past month.

"_Kuso_!" a middle-aged white-haired man in the bed next to his cursed in his sleep. "Damnit _gaki_! I thought I told you to stop having that nightmare already!"

"It's not like I can just control my own mind, _Ero-sennin_!" Naruto shouted back at him.

After about a minute of heavy silence as the older man tried to get back to sleep and the young boy sat in his bed thinking, until finally he asked in a soft voice, "Jiraiya-sensei?"

The old man, Jiraiya of the Sannin, Toad Sage and Spymaster of Konoha, sighed as he realized he wasn't getting back to sleep anytime soon, looked over at his apprentice and asked in a voice just as soft, "Yeah, Naruto?"

"You ever heard of a castle that looks like a human skull? Made out of gray stone?" he asked.

Jiraiya blinked. That wasn't the question he was expecting.

"Yeah, everyone has," he scoffed, adopting his usual manner of knowing everything, or at least acting like it. "There's only one and it's a derelict monument in the Land of Whirlpools. Or rather, the former Whirlpool Country. Castle Grayskull. Used to be a safe haven for bandits and revolutionaries, as it stands on the edge of a bottomless chasm. Plenty of caves to hide in there and it has a reputation for being haunted, so not many people visit it unless they're desperate or just sightseeing for a few minutes. Nobody really stays for longer than an hour. Why?"

"Where... where is it? Whirlpool Country? Castle Gray... skull?"

"Why? Want to go sightseeing and prove your bravery that you can stick around it for more than an hour?" Jiraiya laughed. When his pupil did not immediately respond, he stopped laughing and sat up in his bed.

"Naruto, what is it?"

"I..." the blond's voice cracked and he didn't raise his eyes from staring at his hands in his lap. "I... Never mind. Thanks, Ero-sennin. Sorry I woke you. G'night." With that he lay back down and rolled over and pretended to sleep. Jiraiya stared at his back for a short while, then finally his own exhaustion caught up with him and he had to go back to sleep himself, shrugging the incident off as Naruto having a nightmare about something he probably didn't want to know about.

_Land of Whirlpool_

_October 11, (4 months into Time-skip)_

Naruto couldn't believe his luck as he stared over the landscape before him. Yesterday, Ero-sennin, or rather his sensei Jiraiya had gotten a message from one of his contacts during breakfast and whatever was on it had him spitting out everything in his mouth in surprise, if not outright shock. Naruto had tried to find out what was wrong, but rather than answer, his sensei had just rushed through the rest of breakfast and then dropped the bombshell that he had to go to the Land of Ricefields as soon as possible. As in immediately after breakfast.

So, Naruto was left on his own again, as Jiraiya refused to tell him what was going on and reassured him over and over that it was nothing before telling him to meet him at a safe house in Tea Country, although he called it a motel, Naruto had long ago learned what that really meant.

He left a scroll with a training regimen for Naruto to follow daily as well as three times as much money as he would need to get to the safe house and stay there for a week. Which took Naruto the entire morning to figure out that it meant Jiraiya would probably be gone for _more_ than a week and the extra money was meant to keep Naruto occupied until he finally did get to the meeting point.

Naruto had spent the rest of the day at that Inn until it was check-out time, the next morning. Then he packed up all his stuff and immediately went to the port. However, instead of taking the ferry to Tea Country, he asked about a ship going to the former Whirlpool Country. None were, so he took the next best thing, a ship going to Water Country, and from there he spent three days working on a fishing boat as payment for passage to the Land of Whirlpools. It was practically on the other side of the ocean almost, protected by mountains and dangerous whirlpools in the sea.

The fishing boat dropped him off on the shore nearest to where he wanted to go, but unfortunately the closest they could get was several miles down shore from the whirlpools, and in the end he had an entire mountain range between him and the abandoned Whirlpool Country. After a night camping out under the stars, with his shadow clones to keep watch, he had the same dream again, but it was different too.

He kept seeing the castle again and again, but this time, he saw a sword. It was beautiful, but still functional, just a solid double-edged blade with a simple hilt and grip. He also could hear more fighting and felt like there was a battle raging all around him. When he woke up, screaming of course, he knew without doubt that he had to cross the mountains to reach his destination.

It never really occurred to Naruto, even has he trekked across the mountain range somehow knowing where to go and yet not at the same time, that he was essentially on his own with no back up, no support, and no one really knew where he was nor where he was going. He was truly on his own for the first time in his life, and he felt like he was just on another mission for Konoha. He'd bought plenty of rations and caught a decent amount of fish while on the fishing boat, and Jiraiya had taught him how to hunt and gather food and then prepare it in the wilderness. It was hardly a three-course meal, but it kept him alive and he had no one to complain to about it anyway.

Two weeks after leaving Jiraiya and following his dreams to the Land of Whirlpools, he arrived at his destination, leading him to where he stood now, standing on the edge of a mountain cliff, looking out over a wide plain that merged with a dark forest. On the other side of that forest was his goal and destination, the image that had been haunting his dreams for over a month now. Castle Grayskull.

Best estimate, he judged, looking down the cliff-side and across the forested valley between him and the derelict castle, about a days journey left, maybe two if he rested for the night at the base of the mountain. He wanted to rush and just jump off the cliff right now and run all the way there in just a few hours, but something inside told him that he would need all his strength when he did finally get there, and it was better to be fully rested and alert than exhausted and tired.

So, taking one last look at the scenery, he sighed, and then smoothly walked off the cliff.

Thirty feet down, he rolled his body as he came close to the cliff face and angled it so that his feet landed along the rocky wall. Using the first chakra control exercise Kakashi-sensei had ever taught him... well the _only_ chakra control exercise Kakashi had ever taught him, he kept his footing and began to run straight down the mountainside, keeping up the momentum of his fall so he made good speed when finally it sloped down to join the flat ground and turned it into a fast run as he raced across the plain.

By nightfall, he'd reached the edge of the forest, and he knew that he would be stopping for the night here. He could resume in the morning at first light. Plus, there was something about the dark forest that warned him of danger. At night he wouldn't see it coming, and at least in the daylight he could find the path of least resistance to the castle.

He quickly set up camp, only going a few meters into the forest to gather firewood and cooking himself a meal and unsealing a few necessities that he'd collected during his journey, such as sleeping back, Port-A-Loo, tent, and ready-made traps to discourage predators.

After a quick dinner of fish and instant ramen, he went to bed and sleep came quickly, if not quietly. He had the dream he'd had ever since he'd left Konoha and begun his training journey with Jiraiya, the same dream that had started him on this solo mission in the first place. Castle Grayskull was before him, the same point of view he'd seen when he'd gotten his first glimpse of it today on top of the cliff. Then there was a flash, of steel striking steel. Another vantage point of the castle, from the air, he realized. More flashes, weapons clashing, sounds now to accompany what his mind had already interpreted as a battle. He was right in front of the castle right now, looking up into the empty, dark, soulless windows that looked like eye-sockets. The jaw bridge started to lower... and this time, Naruto saw something in the darkness.

A sword! A gleaming sword, the same color of kunai and shuriken, just over four feet long from hilt to tip, double-edged with no ornaments decorating it, showing that it was made to be used. It had a double-handed grip and a flat, dull guard around the hilt and a small red and silver symbol that looked like two red vertical arches crossed by a flat horizontal line intersecting both of them. He'd never seen anything like it before.

Naruto's eyes snapped open as he awoke, almost surprised that it was now morning and the night went by so quickly. He didn't spend much time wasting the morning, gathering and cleaning up his campsite and turning to the jungle before the sun had fully cleared the mountains on the horizon. He leapt into the trees, using his chakra to bring him up to the branches and launch him between them as fast as he could stand to go.

There were a number of close calls, from either predators patrolling the jungle, to vicious plants that were just as, if not more dangerous than the animal predators. It wasn't long until he finally came through the jungle though, and shortly after noon he was walking up to the edge of the cliff where Castle Grayskull stood tall. By the middle of the afternoon, he stood at the exact spot where his dream usually ended, right in front of where Grayskull's jaw-bridge would open, looking up at the ancient building, just as awe-inspiring as it must have been the hundreds if not thousands of years ago when it was first built.

For a couple of minutes, he just stood there, staring. Then, suddenly and without warning, the jaw-bridge began to lower. It wasn't like it was old and falling apart from age, nor breaking down either. If anything, it looked well-used and cared for, though the clanking chains were rather loud and it landed heavily on the ground before him with an echoing boom, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The eerie blackness of the inner keep was foreboding, but Naruto felt an undeniable urge to enter the castle. He did not immediately run inside, however. His experience as a ninja had at least tempered _some_ patience into him, and this entire adventure had been very out of the ordinary for the young and reckless ninja. He waited until his curiosity got the better of him, and then stepped up onto the bridge, then waited to see if anything would happen, ready to summon up an army of shadow clones or switch out with a log from the forest as needed.

No traps were sprung. No weapons came flying out at him. No enemies attacked him, and no guardians came charging out of the castle to repel him. Glancing back only once at the way he'd come from, to confirm there were no enemies about to attack him in the back, Naruto stepped forward and walked across the bridge.

It was not until he was on the other side and taking the step from the wooden jaw-bridge to the stone floor of the inside of the castle, crossing the threshold, that he felt a shock run through him. He paused, one foot inside, one foot outside, wondering what it was he'd just felt. He waited only a couple more seconds, still trying to figure out what he'd felt, then finally just shrugged to himself, figuring it for static electricity or something. He stepped fully into the castle and started exploring.

Several hours later, Naruto had discovered that the inside of the castle was made up of the same gray stone that the outside was. It was also much, much, much bigger on the inside than it looks like it is on the outside. There was this one corridor where he fell under a genjutsu, or some other kind of illusion of a winged demon attacking him, then another where the floor just fell away into a bottomless abyss. It was like an ultra weird fun house that could teach Orochimaru a few things about traps and security.

When it was getting close to sunset, judging by how long he'd been exploring the castle, he finally found a room that looked like it was as big as the castle itself, or at least the skull portion. There was also a giant dais, in the shape of a pyramid with steps going up to an ornate throne. There was someone sitting on that throne.

"Hello, Uzumaki Naruto," the woman greeted him. She was dressed in decorative bird-motif attire, had vivid green eyes and held a staff as tall as she is with a bird at the top. "I have been expecting you."

TBC...?


	18. Power Rangers: Slayer Training

**________________________________________________________________________________**

In the High School gym, Alexander "Xander" Harris was near-beating the stuffing out of the punching bag he had set up there. Only near because, for the moment, the stuffing was still _in_ the bag. He was frustrated. Understandably so, but no more than the others that he worked with and had been chosen to be his team. Xander just chose to exercise that frustration in different ways than his fellow "Rangers", though they still had no powers and were only Rangers by title and training alone.

Four months, he thought. Four months of constant training, late-night patrolling, killing vampires, staking the ones that rise in the graveyards, and learning more martial arts and fighting techniques than the number of math's and sciences taught in the school. And still, they had less than butt kiss!

Yes, they were slowly weeding down the vampire population, but the real threat, the true threat were all of the demons that were drawn to the Hellmouth. Xander and his team had faced off against over a hundred vampires since they were chosen by the Watcher's Council, but only two demons. Both times, they ran for their lives from the demons, Xander actually ending up in the hospital for three weeks when he tried to take on the demon, he didn't remember what it was or what it was called, just that he'd been hurt, and it was laughing.

_'We need to get our powers. If only I had Ranger powers, then I could take down every demon in Sunny Grove and then I'll finally get the respect and attention that I deserve!'_ Xander thought to himself, letting his arms and body go on autopilot against the punching bag.

So focused on his thoughts and feelings, Xander never noticed the person that entered the gym and stood there for a moment watching him before moving off onto her own exercise. It wasn't until Xander heard the distinct sound of someone jumping up on the Uneven Bars that he realized he was no longer alone.

Xander paused and caught the swinging bag before it hit him and turned to see who had come in, in the middle of his workout. When he saw Cordelia Chase swinging and flipping like a propeller on the bars he smiled and shook his head. He should have known.

He stood and watched the girl for several more moments. She shifted her weight like a professional gymnast, causing her to pause at the top of her propeller spin on the bars, before falling at an even greater speed, and spinning twice more before she let herself fly free, doing a triple axis back flip as she landed perfectly.

Xander snorted and shook his head. _'Show off,'_ he thought before turning back to his own workout. He turned his full attention back to the punching bag and began to hit it over and over again, working out his life's frustrations on the helpless sack of stuffing.

"Am not!" Cordelia suddenly crowed from directly behind the young soldier.

"Am not what?" Xander asked with steady breath, undistracted from his exercise.

"I am not a show off! I'll have you know that I…I just wanted to see how you were. I…Giles was worried," she lamely finished.

"Well tell _Giles_ that I'm fine," Xander snapped, throwing a devastating combo. "I just felt the need to work of some steam, ya know? I mean, come on Cor. They've made the same promises over and over and _over_. And they are no closer to finding our powers than they were a hundred years ago! It says so in all those books they're having us research through."

"I know Xander, but…" Cordelia started to say, but stopped when Xander paused and caught the bag.

"No buts about it! They came to our little burg here, saying that we're the chosen ones, the only ones that fit the birth charts that say who will be Power Rangers. They explain, in details they aren't even sure about I might add, how it will be once we get our powers. How we'll finally be able to turn back the hoard of demons invading our world, and how we'll save the lives of our friends and family by turning the scales back towards the Light. And ya know what Cor? I'm sick of it!" With that, Xander hit the bag as absolutely hard as he could with his right fist. The bag snapped off the chain holding it and slammed solidly against the near wall.

Cordelia was quiet as Xander glared at her, daring her to comment further. He walked past her and picked up his towel, drying the sweat around his red tank top. He shortly left the gym, leaving for who knows where. Cordelia watched him go, longing to call him back, to ease his frustrations, his inner demons. Unfortunately, she saw his point all too clearly and she had her share of those demons as well. All of the Rangers did.

Frowning, Cordelia realized she now had some of her own steam to let off and turned to the Parallel Bars, planning on bending, twisting, stretching and flipping her body until she either collapsed from exhaustion, or Xander ran back into the gym declaring his undying love for her. Whichever happened first.

Cordelia took a long sip from her water bottle, planning on an extended session.

**_______________________________________________________________________________**


	19. Körpertausch

**Körpertausch**

_Giles Apartment_

"Giles, we've got a big problem, and we need you to fix it!" Buffy announced as soon as he barged in the door.

Giles looked up from his reading at Xander, or at least who he thought was Xander, who had been the one to shout, much the same way Buffy might've in the ex-Watcher's experience.

"Yes Xander, what can I do for you?" Giles said tolerantly as he noticed Buffy coming in and closing the door behind her, looking unusually quiet and relaxed. Not that she actually _looked_ relaxed, but given Xander's announcement, she was more relaxed than she should have been.

Xander stared at Giles in something bordering disbelief and outright hysteria when the young man seemed to come to some sort of internal realization and shook his head.

"Some…demony thingie switched mine and Xander's bodies while we were out on patrol. Giles! It's me! Buffy!" Xander, or rather Xander's body, exclaimed, making wild hand gestures.

Buffy had a wry smirk on her face, her arms crossed and sitting on the edge of the couch. "Yeah, and it's not even Friday. I thought stuff like this only happened on "Freaky Fridays"?" she quirked.

Xander glared at Buffy, the same way that Buffy might've glared at Xander if he had been the one to make that joke Giles realized, and stared himself as he processed what Xander, er… _Buffy_ was saying.

"Wait, you, uh, you're saying that, uh, you two have switched bodies?" Giles tried to clarify. He knew both of these children well enough that they would not dare to play a practical joke on him with such a blasé scenario, but despite this being the Hellmouth, this was not a common occurrence.

"Ding, ding, ding! And tell our G-man what he's won Buff," Buffy, er… _Xander_ said in a bad announcer's voice.

"Yes!" Buffy in Xander's body said with much relief and an almost over-dramatization of it.

"How-how did this happen?" Giles exclaimed, getting up, no doubt in his mind that they were telling the truth.

"I don't know," Buffy (AN: From now on imagine Xander's body when it says "Buffy" and Buffy when it says "Xander" until it says differently) said, turning around and biting his thumbnail. (Oh, and given the gender changes, Buffy=him, his, he and Xander=her, she, etc.)

"One minute Xander and I were walking through the cemetery on patrol, then I felt a vamp nearby and we went to check it out. It was in the clearing between the cemetery and the park, you know which one Giles," Giles nodded, he knew where they were talking about, "Anyway, the second we walk into the clearing, this… _guy_ stakes the vamp I sensed, and then he starts this weird voodoo chant and I can't even move, and I don't think Xander could either, and then things get really…"

"Freaky," Xander supplied, to be rewarded with glares from the both of them. She stayed quiet now.

"Freaky," Buffy continued with Xander's word for it, "And the second it's over I'm trying to find the weird guy, but he like vanished into thin air and that's about the time that we noticed that he had switched our bodies. Giles, how can we reverse this?!"

Giles just stared at the face he knew as 'Xander', trying desperately to replace it, hopefully temporarily, with 'Buffy' as he raced to think of something to say. What came out of his mouth made him wish he had risked another minute under his Slayer's glare for waiting.

"Would you like some tea?" he asked the both of them.

"G-man, is that what you British call the solution to _every_ problem?" Xander asked.

Giles winced and glared at the dreaded nickname coming from Buffy's voice.

Buffy huffed out a breath and planted himself on the couch, obviously pouting, but with Xander's face it made the image quite comical. "Wills is gonna kill me!" he exclaimed.

"You! I'm the one living out his fantasy at the moment! What the hell do you think she's gonna do to me?" Xander exclaimed, moving to sit beside her former body.

Buffy turned and stared, shocked, at Xander. "What the hell do you mean you're living out a fantasy? That's _my_ body and… Omigawd! Oh. My. God. Tell me you did not fantasize about being the Slayer?"

"No!" Xander immediately denied. Then she looked sheepish and a light blush spread across her cheeks. "I…used to fantasize about being a girl."

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that? WHAT!" Buffy yelled.

"I…used to fantasize about…being a girl," Xander admitted, now her face quite red.

"Don't worry Xander, that's perfectly normal," Giles assured the misplaced youth as he tossed back a full glass of whiskey.

"Giles! Stay out of this!" Buffy shouted, and then did a double take. "Are you drinking?!"

"I'm going to call Willow," Xander suddenly decided and stood up and walked over to the phone.

"What!? No, why do you want to call Willow? You said she was going to kill you!" Buffy shouted, following after his former body.

"I didn't mean that literally Buffy, and in case you forgot, Giles might be research-guru, but Willow is the witch extraordinaire. She's the one with the mojo to get us back to normal. Why was she gonna kill _you_ anyway?" Xander asked, confused.

Now it was Buffy's turn to blush, but on Xander's body it didn't show half as much. "Well… Because of Oz, we had planned a mourn-fest, with all the chocolate we could stuff ourselves with, and we were planning it after I got back from patrol with you and now…" Xander realized that Buffy was trying to do that pouty thing with her face that made her just too cute to resist.

Buffy's face, for now Xander's, was scrunched up in disgusted confusion as she requested, "Please don't do that with my face. It, it just makes me look… ugly." Buffy stopped contorting his face and adopted the one that was often seen on Xander's face, clueless confusion.

Xander dialed the dorm room and on the second ring, Willow picked up.

"Hello?"

"Hey! Willow, just who I was calling!" Xander greeted, feeling better just for having talked with her oldest friend.

"Buffy?" Willow's voice sounded confused.

Xander winced as she realized what had just happened. "Uh, listen, I know that, uh, things were planned tonight, but we need you to get over to Giles' place ASAP. Something major Hellmouthy is going down and we need you here to help."

"I'll be right there," Xander could here the accompanying resolve of Willow's 'Resolve Face' in her voice as she spoke. "Should I call Xander and tell him to meet us there?"

Xander froze, and looked up at Buffy's still confused eyes and face. "Uh, Xander's already here. Please, just get here as soon as you can. I'll explain when you get here. Uh, it'll be easier if you see it for yourself anyway."

"I'll be right there," Willow hung up, Xander did also.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Buffy asked, doubt clouding his features.

Xander shrugged. "I couldn't keep this from her if I wanted to. And I'm sure that we _are_ going to need her help. If not with reversing this, then definitely with helping us cover it up until we can."

"Who says we can't reverse this?" Buffy cried in a panicky voice, one that was also familiar to Xander's voice.

"We will!" Xander was quick to confirm, despite having his own doubts. "We will reverse this. But we still can't keep this from Willow."

"All right, I guess you're right," Buffy admitted, sitting back down. "I wouldn't want to hide anything from Willow right now anyway. And… Giles! Stop drinking long enough to help us figure this out! I mean, even if we can reverse this, what's stopping Mr. Blue and orange eyes from doing this again?"

Giles stopped as the glass was halfway to his mouth. His forehead frowned as he sat the glass down. "Blue and orange eyes?" he repeated, looking at the switched youths.

Both Buffy and Xander nodded.

"Were there any other distinguishable things about this man?"

"Well, he…" Buffy started to say, but Xander interrupted.

"He was African American, about 6'2", had a velvet black pinstripe suit, had to be custom made. Suede black shoes, polished too, a red silk Armani shirt, collars folded to inside of the jacket, a rather smooth face, my guess is he doesn't make facial expressions too often, and had short-cropped black hair, no curls." Xander listed. Then her eyes sparked as she added, "Oh, and his eyes were blue for normal people's whites, he had orange irises, and I think purple pupils. Couldn't easily tell, he was at least ten feet away from us the first we saw him."

Both Buffy and Giles stared in muted shock at the blonde. "What?" she asked.

"How…how did you remember that much detail?" Buffy finally blurted.

Xander shrugged. "Practice. And Soldier guy was pretty good at identifying a situation at nothing but a glance. Musta been one of the things to stick," she answered.

The two just continued to stare until not even five minutes after the call had finished, Willow burst into Giles apartment. "Hey! Sorry it took me so long, but I had to run!" Willow said between gasping breaths.

Buffy immediately got up and guided Willow to the couch and helped her sit down.

"Thanks Xander," Willow thanked the young man for the kind gesture. "So what's the apocalypse this time?"

Everyone else started at Willow's words and looked back and forth between one another. Especially between Buffy and Xander. "Come on guys, what's the problem?" Willow prompted once again.

"You're the one that called her," Buffy accused, folding his arms across his too-broad, too-flat chest.

Xander sighed. "Willow, something, happened tonight. On patrol, to me and…well, something happened on patrol. B…uh, we ran across this weird demon guy, or at least this weird guy with weird eyes, and he kinda…cast a spell, at least I think it was a spell, on us. On me and…" Xander couldn't finish, what with Willow staring innocently up into her eyes.

"What happened Willow is," Buffy continued for the former-Zeppo, "was that this guy switched our bodies. I'm Buffy, and that…" pointing at Xander who waved with a half-smirk, "…is Xander."

Willow was silent for several moments, some of them spent looking into each of the youths' eyes. "If this is a joke, it is not funny," she finally said, her voice deathly quiet.

"It's not a joke! Gawd Will, I would never do that to you!" Xander exclaimed.

"I do not believe it to be a, a ruse either Willow," Giles finally spoke up. "Admittedly, we have never come across something like this before…"

"Except for Amy and her mom," Buffy interrupted.

"At least they were both girls!" Xander added.

Giles, despite the interruption, continued, "…it does not stand as entirely implausible. And you must admit that, neither of them are truly acting like themselves."

Willow blinked, and then something seemed to shock the little redhead out of her doubt and she looked at each of her best friends in a whole new light. "Oh my god! I, you're right! I'm so sorry I didn't believe you guys! What can I do to help?"

Willow stood up and hugged each of her friends.

"Are, are you both all right, I mean, uh, which is who, I mean, whose who? Uh, Giles?" Willow became confused after hugging.

"There are only two of us in this switch Wills," Buffy pointed out.

Willow looked up at her longest friend's face. "Buffy?" she asked timidly. Gently, the dark haired man nodded. Then Willow turned and looked at the blonde haired, hazel-eyed girl that was a couple inches shorter than her. "Xander?" she asked, sounding a bit amused, but still timid. Xander, still smirking, nodded.

Willow tried, only partially successful, to fight the grin from coming to her face. "Looks like all your dreams finally came true, huh Xan? Not only do you get to be a super hero and a girl, but the girl is Buffy."

Xander's face flushed bright red. "Don't remind me. Just please, please tell me you can fix this with some kind of spell or something!"

Suddenly all gaiety left Willow's features, and she turned entirely serious.

"I…I can't. Not without knowing the spell that was performed on you. You shouldn't mess with magicks the same way you did chemicals in high school Xander. This is a lot more dangerous than chemical burns or mini-explosions." Willow explained.

"Quite right," Giles agreed. "But I believe that I have a recollection of who Buffy and Xander describe as their assailant. Unfortunately, it's a vague recollection at best. We need to research this…person, whether demon or sorcerer first. It is possible that he is known for casting this type of spell, or that people have heard of him before. In either case…"

"Research party," Xander glumly announced. "They were so much more fun when there were more people to help out."

"Well, er, yes, but for now we need to find out all we can, if anything about this creature that, did this to you," Giles said, grabbing several books off the shelf and bringing them over to the group.

"So, what exactly are we looking for, besides body switching spells?" Willow asked.

"Well, I'm sure _Xander_ could tell you," Buffy sarcastically snapped as he grabbed a book.

Willow looked confused for several seconds before she reminded herself of the body switch and turned to Xander, her once bestest female friend Buffy, now her bestest female friend Xander. "Well?" she asked.

Xander shrugged. "Biggest diff between him and every other black guy on the planet were his eyes. Blue where the whites were supposed to be, orange irises, and purple pupils." Suddenly Xander laughed. "Heh, purple pupil eaters," she half sang.

"Xander, if you don't want me pouting with your face, don't make stupid jokes with mine," Buffy snapped again.

"But Buff, making stupid jokes is what I do," Xander replied with a too-innocent look on her face. "How could you deny me what makes me, me?"

"You're _not_ you anymore… I mean, you're not, I'm… Just don't do it!" Buffy snapped, his male features making the warning all the more threatening.

Willow frowned with fear. She had never seen Xander's features look so angry, so mean… so much like his father. Willow frowned further as she picked up a book and began to flip through it, thinking that "Xander" was indeed acting exactly like Buffy would in this situation. And the stark comparison of Xander to his father made Willow all the more concerned about her friend the Slayer.


	20. Meanwhile REALM02

REALM 02 (By: Joshua "The Evil Guy", Enterprise1701_d, and Doc4)

Alexander Lavelle Harris sighed as he made his way in the back door of Buffy's home. It used to be the "Summers' home" but since Joyce...

It seemed as if since the whole Adam debacle and they'd kicked Spike outta town, the whole universe had turned against the Scooby Gang. First Anya announced, in the middle of a very public place he'll never mention by name again, that she'd found somebody that gave her much better orgasms than he did, and was rich and was promising her a life full of nothing but money and sex, and sex for money, and that she was leaving him. Four days later, on a patrol with Buffy and Giles down by the docks, he'd seen her talking to Sunnydale's only and most infamous pimp, dressed in a barely-there micro-skirt, a frilly brightly colored bra missing a strap and a glittery gold jacket that you see all the prostitutes on TV wear.

For some reason he found he couldn't even try to go and talk to her. She was human now, and part of being human was living with the choices you make, even if they turn out to be mistakes.

The thing with his parents wasn't even a blip on his radar. Quite frankly he was grateful for it, although he had wished they'd given him some warning. Not to mention he was cursing out their timing as because he was suddenly 'homeless' he'd lost his job with the construction company. If only they'd waited one more month, just one more month, he would have gotten the promotion to foreman and could have afforded his own place, even if it would have been a crappy one-bedroom apartment, anything was better than the Harris household.

Even Giles' place.

Which, while not one of the _worst_ things about the past year or so, didn't necessarily make it one of the good things either. But still... he owed the G-man, big time, for taking him in like he did.

As bad as he and G-man, and even Buffy had it, Xander couldn't imagine how Willow and Tara were holding it together. Thankfully the lesbian couple were still together, but they'd been through some shit that made Xander cringe even after everything he'd been through.

Willow had it pretty bad, especially after her parents had found out about her and Tara. Admittedly Willow and her blonde lover hadn't even tried to cover it up or keep it from anybody, but either way it was pretty bad.

Lots of yelling, more and more fights, oh and Willow "demonstrating" magic to her psychologist parents a couple times to remind them that she'd been a witch since High School. Culminating in the worst thing to happen to the Scooby Gang, until Mrs. Summers passed away, which happened about a month after. Willow's parents, the both of them, disowned her.

Really! Xander didn't even think anyone did that anymore, and after having a set like his he couldn't imagine the downside to it. Until he and Buffy caught up with her and Tara the night after it happened. He never wanted to see that look on Willow's face ever again.

He'd driven, but it was both him and Buffy that paid a midnight visitation to the Rosenberg's the next night. By morning their house was for sale, by the next week, the Rosenberg's were no longer residents of the Hellmouth. When Willow found out, thanks mostly to Tara finding out and forcing Xander and Buffy to confess, she was "disappointed" in them, but didn't blame them. She even thanked the two of them later on, saying it would probably be easier not ever having to see _them_ again.

Later, Tara had revealed some of the things Willow's parents had said to their daughter during some of their many arguments. It was a good thing they had left, otherwise the Council might be putting a second Slayer in prison for murder. That is if Buffy could have gotten to them first.

Unfortunately, it was Tara who'd had the worst of it. About a month after Mrs. Summers had passed away, some stupid college punks had gotten drunk and started harassing Willow and Tara. Willow promptly humiliated them and Buffy, Xander and Giles had joined them shortly after as it was near the Bronze.

Two days later, Tara had been walking back to the dorm alone from a late night group patrol. Those same punks stalked her, grabbed her, and raped her.

Willow, due to her extraordinary leaps in magic lately, had felt it the moment it happened thanks to some psychic bond that had developed between Tara and her. She grabbed Buffy and Xander and Giles and immediately the Scooby Gang started to hunt down the villains. Turns out they were late by seconds.

A pack of vampires had been passing by and slaughtered the college punks. One of the vampires had tried to continue with Tara, but that's when Willow and posse showed up. Between an enraged Xander, a pissed off Slayer and a righteously angered ex-Watcher, the rest of the vampires didn't even last long enough to take a breath, if they'd been breathing that is.

The one that had been over Tara though . . .

Willow got to that one first.

The demon population was still talking about, in stark raving terror, what she'd done to that poor un-souled creature. In the following weeks between that event and the start of school, the demon population of the Primary Hellmouth had never known such a massacre as the rampage that the Slayer and the Scooby Gang left in their wake as they worked their way through the town, those that weren't always by Tara's side holding her through the night terrors that is.

It was dark times for the Scooby Gang indeed.

On the brighter note, Willow and Tara were closer than ever. Willow's prowess in magic was growing exponentially, and after her . . . expenditure on the vampire, she'd felt she'd gone close enough for her taste to the "dark side" and was always careful and controlled about her magic use now.

Xander had finally gotten over his 'crush' on Buffy and the two were now the best of friends. Since the death of her mother, Xander had always been by Buffy's side, no matter what. Giles, likewise, had gotten much closer with all of the teenagers since Joyce's untimely death, taking on the role of a father figure and older friend.

Of course the bright side also has it's shadows, as once school started back up, the Gang's bad luck went from 'bad' to as 'bad as it could get without an apocalypse'.

A week into school, the Watcher's Council contacted Giles with a detailed letter that was the pompous English way of saying that while Faith was in prison, she'd tried to commit suicide, mostly succeeded, the prison doctor getting to her in time to bring her back, and there was a new Slayer around. A girl named Kennedy that would be coming to the Hellmouth after the Fall semester once she'd been "properly" trained.

In the meantime, Angel and Wesley in LA had pulled some strings and Faith got off on a technicality, namely that she'd been a minor and lack of evidence and she was set free after a sentence of "time already served".

So, in light of that, the Watcher's Council was sending her back to the Hellmouth, to be placed directly under Slayer Summer's care. Namely, Buffy's house. And despite whatever protests the gang raised, Faith still showed up at the end of August, a dead look in her eye and feeling just as crappy and bummed out about the situation as the rest of them were.

The saying 'Misery Loves Company' is no joke, nor is it a misnomer. The Scooby Gang, seeing similar, if not worse pain in Faith as what they were going through themselves, decided to let bygones be bygones once and for all and to put it simply, forgave Faith. They told her as much, she said 'Whatever,' and became Buffy's, Willow's, and Tara's roommate in Buffy's house. Xander still got a happy whenever he imagined the kind of slumber parties that went on inside this house with four drop dead gorgeous young women, two infamous for being horny a lot of the time, the other two lesbian witches.

Still, as with everything of the past year or so, it was only a temporary happy at best and not even worth it as he'd never seen so much as a hint of it in all his times visiting since Faith joined the Summers household.

Putting down his uniform, from his temp job that he'd only just got off of (weren't all businesses in Sunnydale supposed to close at sundown?) he grabbed a soda from the fridge and went to the living room, where he could hear Buffy and a couple of the others already there.

Well, he knew Giles would be there, the whole point of him coming to Buffy's house instead of going straight back to Giles' place. He paused though when he heard Faith shout something to be answered by a male voice he didn't recognize. Curious, and concerned, he walked in, and then spit the mouthful of soda he'd just drunk out across the room.

"Ew! Xander! That's so gross!" Buffy exclaimed at her friend, wiping some of the spittle off her clothes.


	21. Kal'El of Konoha Part 2

Chapter 2: Hidden Identities

_Konoha Ninja Academy_

_In The Afternoon_

"All right, settle down, settle down," Iruka called out over the din of students. When it was obvious he was being ignored, be paused to clear his throat and then used a special hand seal under his desk out of sight for his unique self-made jutsu.

The lighting dropped to pitch black in seconds and his head grew to inhuman proportions, lit by an unearthly glow and his voice boomed with the power of thunder as he screamed, "SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP YOU BRATS!!"

Instant quiet, and everyone was at their desks.

Except for three.

It was a little odd, given two of the three, but Iruka could clearly see than Hyuuga Hinata, (perfect attendance record and only quiet one of the bunch), Uchiha Sasuke, (broody problem child that tried too hard in class to beat his older brother's reputation), and Uzumaki Naruto, (...), were late. The only one that normally was late was Uzumaki and the only reason he hadn't been thrown out was because his mother was the Headmistress for the Academy. At least, that's what Iruka _used_ to think. Then he got a look at Naruto's test scores.

At one minute before the last bell rang, all three students came in, one after the other. Hinata first, immediately went to her desk at the back and quietly apologized for being late. Sasuke came in a few seconds later, scowled at the squealing fangirls, and took his usual spot by the window, which thankfully had been left vacant. Iruka remembered the last time someone had sat in Sasuke's seat. It had not been pretty.

Then finally one second just before the bell rang, Naruto stepped into the classroom and was _technically_ on time. He laughed and gave a big over-the-top smile and near-shouted, "Heh, heh, heh, SORRY IRUKA-SENSEI! GUESS I'M STILL ON TIME FOR THE EXAMS, HUH?!"

Iruka winced, then reprimanded the blue-eyed blond, "Naruto, please, keep your voice down when inside. Take your seat, please."

"Oops, sorry again, Iruka-sensei," the prankster chuckled, and scurried over to his seat.

"Idiot," Kiba mocked. Akamaru yipped in agreement.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru mumbled, then turned over in his sleep. Choji was eating.

"Sasuke's sooo coooool coming in late like that!" Sakura and Ino crooned.

Hinata, Naruto, and Sasuke all sighed in exasperation, knowing the roles they had to play, at least until they were separated into their teams. Then they could begin to 'change' under whatever sensei they had and could stop pretending to be the quiet, arrogant Hyuuga princess, the class clown idiot, and the angst prince of brooding respectively. Unfortunately, until then, they had to play those roles to the hilt. Thankfully, today was the last day for each of them, and also for a few others too.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, wanna go on a date with..." Naruto started to ask the pink-haired girl as he sat down next to her.

"NO! For the seventeenth time already! No, I will not go out with you, Naruto-baka! And for your information, that's Sasuke's seat! Now scram!" the banshee shouted in his face. Silently, in a way no one but herself could hear, Sakura voiced her true thoughts, **"**_Oh why can't I just say yes this once! Oh gawd, Naruto-sama is so friggin hott I want to just lick his entire body from toe to head! I'll be glad to graduate today, I've had just about all I can stand of mooning over the Prince of Brooding!! AND I AM GOING TO MAKE MY MOTHER F#%$*! PAY FOR MAKING ME IGNORE NARUTO-SAMA LIKE THIS AND GO FOR THE LOUSY SHOW-BOATING $#%^&%$#^ __**UCHIHA**__ BEFORE SHE DIES!!!!_**"**

Naruto looked wide-eyed and a bit scared at her, but he did not move. **"**_Oh Kami, why does he have to look so darn cute when he's all wide-eyed like that. Even when he's scared-looking, he's hott!_**"**

When she looked like she was about to hit him, he silently pointed to the front window seat, where Sasuke was already seated, appearing to brood by staring out the window.

"Eh?" Sakura whined out loud. "B-b-but Sasuke-kun...!" **"**_Whew! Dodged that bullet!_**"**

"Nyeh!" Ino stuck her tongue out at her rival, moving to the seat next to Sasuke, _'Hah! Beat that, Forehead! Now Sasuke-kun is all mine!'_ only to find Naruto already there next to the brooding prince. _'What the heck? How did he get past me and move from Sakura's seat to this one so fast?!'_

"Wha—? How did...?" Ino started to ask, but Iruka stood up at the front of the class and cleared his throat to get everyone's attention before she could say anything. In the back, Hinata giggled to herself, having seen the whole thing.

"All right, settle down, settle down," Iruka called for order. Slowly, bit by bit the room quieted down.

"Now, today is the day of Final Exams. Those that pass will have the opportunity to go on and become ninja of Konoha, with the rank of _genin_ under a _jounin_ as your immediate supervisor and sensei. Among those that pass the exam today, we will also be dividing you up into three-man teams. Now, good luck to everyone."

Thus began the day of the Ninja Academy Exams.

First up, the written exams. Naruto read the questions and had already remembered the answers to each of them and was mentally going over what to put in the essay questions before the paper was even put down on his desk in the half a second it took Iruka to lay it in front of him. While he was handing out the rest, Naruto took out his pen and answered all the multiple choice questions before Iruka had put down the next person's test.

"Naruto," Iruka warned him, having seen Naruto try to peek at the questions as was expected of the class clown and Konoha's Number 2 Prankster. (They'd had an actual competition last year, he came in second, after his mother took first of course, while some white-skinned kid named Sai took third)

"Heh, sorry Iruka-sensei," Naruto blushed, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. He then waited until Iruka turned his back and was in no position to see him out of the corner of his eye before flipping the test back over and tackling the first, second and last essay questions. He finished the rest in between the moments he could be sure Iruka wasn't looking, making sure that it looked like he was only peeking each time.

When Iruka finally had passed out all the tests and made it back up to his desk at the front, he told the students to turn over their tests and begin. The only thing Naruto had left to do on his test was fill out his name. Which he did, and then spent the next hour 'fretting', running his fingers through his hair, making faces, and noises to make it look like he was having trouble answering the questions while covering his test to make it look as though he were discouraging cheaters, even while he 'covertly' glanced at his neighbors tests. He was actually just making sure nobody was looking to see that he had already completed all of his test.

After the hour finished, they turned in their tests to Iruka himself and were taken outside to the target range where they had a full examination in throwing weapons, as well as demonstrating they knew how to handle both shuriken and kunai before using them.

Naruto displayed a proficiency and expert handling that he had never shown before, which stunned most of the instructors, but made Iruka beam with pride. After the weapons exam, they were separated into boys and girls while the girls had their exam for kunoichi skills, the boys were tasked to demonstrate stealth and hiding techniques. Naruto only missed a single point while Sasuke got the perfect score.

Afterwards came the 'fun' part of the exam, the taijutsu portion.

Naruto briefly wondered how 'well' he should do in the mini-tournament between all the Academy students, both boys and girls. Of course it started out with boys versus boys and girls versus girls, but when it got down to the final six, they mixed and matched between the girls and the boys. The three boys were, of course Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, and Aburame Shino. The three girls were Hyuuga Hinata, Yamanaka Ino, and surprisingly Haruno Sakura.

First match, Shino versus Hinata.

"Ano... good luck, Shino-san," Hinata bowed to her opponent as they both entered the fighting ring.

Shino stood impassively, hands in his pockets, then shrugged and replied in a soft monotone, "Thank you. Do your best, Hinata-san."

She nodded back at him, then both assumed their taijutsu stances, having seen the other fight several times by this point, so there really was no point in holding back. Iruka hesitated for a moment, sensing the sudden change in atmosphere between the two students. Still, these _were_ Academy Students, not even genin yet. Worst that could possibly happen is a few bruises and maybe a scrape or two. "Begin!" he called.

Hinata shot forward like a bolt out of a crossbow. Shino side-stepped and struck out with a mantis-chop to the back of her head. The instant before it would have landed, Hinata ducked down and bent backwards, spinning herself around in a pirouette so she was now behind the bug-user, yet still inside the circle. Shino felt her behind him, but there was little he could do, and though he tried to turn himself around so he could properly block, the most he could do was release a number of kikkai bugs and put his left arm between her palm strike and his back.

The bugs immediately began eating the girls chakra, latching onto her hands and arms, only to suddenly fall off, much the way flies were thrown away by a bug-zapper. Shino's arm was disabled from her _J__ū__ken_ strike, but Hinata also had to step back in order to get the kikkai bugs off of her. It was something the Hyuuga had developed a long time ago, though it was more meant as a deterrent for women against perverts than a defense against the Aburame jutsu. That was just a surprising bonus.

Shino considered for several moments before sighing and bowed to the young heiress, then deliberately stepped outside the ring, signaling his forfeiture. Hinata smiled, understanding, and bowed back to her classmate, before turning to Iruka and bowing to him and then going back in line.

Iruka stood there, gaping, not sure if he was seeing things of if he'd suddenly gotten in way over his head. Hinata... Hyuuga Hinata got full marks, again, he noted. At this rate, depending mostly on how she did in the ninjutsu portion, she would be ranked as Top Kunoichi for the class, and depending on how well the boys did, possibly even Rookie of the Year!

"Uh, next up," he consulted his chart quickly and then called out the names, "Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke." After he heard the words leave his mouth, he did a double-take and rechecked the chart, then watched in utter confusion as the pink-haired, self-proclaimed #1 Sasuke Fangirl stepped into the ring opposite her popular crush. The confusion came about in that she wasn't squealing over being in front of 'Sasuke-kun' and even more so, given the girl's scores so far, if she won then that would put her in the #2 slot for Top Kunoichi. Yamanaka Ino was in the same situation he realized.

Iruka was honestly surprised to see how well Sakura was doing in the taijutsu portion of the test. The girl had never revealed herself to be particularly skilled, even in the matches up till now, she'd been rather violently bi-polar, being sweet and innocent sounding before and after the matches, but screaming out loud and throwing powerful punches and kicks that carried a lot of strength behind them when fighting.

Before Iruka could tell the two to begin, he felt a tugging on his sleeve and looked down to see Hinata standing there. "Uh, yes, Hinata-san?" he asked, thinking she just needed permission to go inside or something like that.

"Ano... Iruka-sensei," she hesitantly spoke, nervously twiddling her fingers, "would I be correct in assuming that Ino and Naruto have the next match, and then whoever wins that match will fight the winner of this one?"

Intrigued, but seeing no harm in answering, he just nodded his head, saying, "That's right. And if either one of the girls win, then you will fight them. If the boys win however, then I'll have them face off and you'll have to fight the winner of that bout to win the title of Rookie of the Year. Is there anything else, Hinata-san?"

"N-no, Iruka-sensei," the girl blushed and went back into line.

"Whenever you're ready, Iruka-_sensei_," Sasuke snapped at the instructor, impatient.

Iruka glared at the boy, suddenly irrationally wishing that Sakura would actually kick this arrogant boy's ass and teach him some humility. "Begin!"

"Hn," Sasuke scoffed, then got into his ready stance, though he really doubted he'd need it, or his Sharingan against this simpering fangirl. Probably all he'd really need to do would be to smile at her and she'd faint from joy or something like that.

Except Sakura did not scream, swoon, or act like a simpering fangirl at all. She got into the Academy Basic stance and seemed to be waiting for Sasuke to make the first move. He decided to go easy on her.

"Why don't you go ahead and give up, Haruno, save me the time so I can get on to my real fight," he said to her. He expected her to just squeal and bob her head up and down a few times before agreeing with him, so needless to say he was practically floored when he heard her shout at him instead, her face a mask of anger.

"LIKE HELL EMO-KING!!" she screamed, then charged, her fist thrown back for a punch.

"Huh?!" Sasuke was so surprised he almost didn't duck away in time.

"What's up with Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked from the sidelines.

"Ano... Sakura-san is... bi-polar," Hinata answered him.

"That explains a lot," Ino sniffed in disdain.

Sakura only had a single thought in her enraged mind as she continued the attack on Uchiha Sasuke, '_**FINALLY!**_'

Sasuke was as scared as he'd ever been in his time at the Academy. It's one thing to fear fangirls for being fangirls! It's something else when those fangirls actually try and kill you! It was only thanks to his weekly training with Naruto and Hinata that he was able to overcome his shock and continue dodging the pink-haired girls attacks. Thankfully, those attacks were rather basic, even if they were performed with surprising strength and speed, there was none of the originality nor skill that he had grown used to facing in his friends.

Still, just because it wasn't hard did not make it easy as the girl proved to be surprisingly nimble herself.

Sakura mostly just kept up straight punches, though they came at about one and a half per second, rather than one every second and a half that one might normally expect from a girl of Sakura's age. Sasuke might normally have done the 'cool thing' and just dodged her punches by barely moving and letting them pass his head just by tilting it every which way, but her speed was no joke! He couldn't afford to be 'cool' if he didn't want to get hit!

Likewise with her defense, Sakura seemed to get small bursts of speed just before he would hit her whether with a punch or a kick, and she seemed to be an expert at skidding to the side. Sasuke was getting very annoyed.

"Damnit! Stand still so I can hit you!" he growled when his frustration got the better of him.

At the sidelines, Naruto groaned and covered his hand over his eyes.

"Sasuke-san seems to be having trouble," Hinata giggled, still twiddling her fingertips, though different from the way she normally did it.

"He's easy to surprise," Naruto commented to her. "He judges his opponent at a glance, Sharingan or not, and if they do anything that he didn't 'judge' they could do, his timing is thrown off and he gets frustrated very easily. I'm wondering if I should throw my fight with him or not."

"Ano... Sasuke-san would not survive if you did that, Naruto-kun," Hinata said in a dark tone, her eyes shadowed as she continued to twiddle her fingertips. Though from anyone else's perspective it looked like she was getting ready to strangle someone.

Ino, having listened in from behind them, slowly crept back, thinking, '_Weird... And creepy. Naruto sounds like he can beat Sasuke without any effort, he just doesn't want to show it. And Hinata... Creepy!_'

Finally, Sasuke's training payed off as Sakura began to tire and her punches were getting softer and her dodges were just a hair bit slower. He managed to tag her as she tried to dodge to the side again, but he'd begun to anticipate that and faster than he'd moved so far, he attacked her from the side she was dodging to before she could react, slamming a roundhouse kick into her chin and sending her flying out of the ring. Iruka quickly checked on her to make sure she was all right. Once he'd confirmed that, he announced Sasuke the winner as Sakura was completely knocked out.

From the sidelines, Naruto and Hinata smirked as they grinned unrepentant at Sasuke. He scoffed at them, annoyed. They were the only ones that had noticed, it seemed, that in the instant before Sakura was knocked out, Sasuke's eyes had a red color in the pupils. He'd reverted back to his normal black eyes by the time Iruka called the match, so it was reasonable to assume only Naruto and Hinata had seen him use the Sharingan. He walked to the other side of the ring to avoid being teased by them.

"Next match is Yamanaka Ino and Uzumaki Naruto!" Iruka called, and the two blonds stepped forward without any hesitation.

"No way will I lose to the Dead Last!" Ino cried, triumphant.

"Uh, Ino..." Naruto said to her, acting a bit unnerved, "You do know that the Academy Tests judge the class ranking, right? The fact that I'm in the semi-finals of the Taijutsu portion means I'm not the Dead Last. Whoever did the worst on all portions of the exam is the Dead Last."

"Uh..." Ino was stunned, not prepared for the kind of comeback.

"Begin!" Iruka called.

Naruto was actually still debating what he should do for his match with Sasuke next round, though he certainly was not idle while he contemplated this. Ino, on the other hand, was already coming at him with the same moves Sakura had used, aka the Academy Taijutsu Basics, just slower and with less than half the strength behind them. Naruto, unlike Sasuke, could easily afford to do the 'cool' dodging thing and avoided attacking, though Ino did retreat out of his strike range just after completing her own attacks to avoid any counter-attacks.

Good, he thought, at least she isn't being stupid about this.

Then again, she is in the semi-finals too, so she must be pretty good, even if she wouldn't be able to beat him. That is, unless he _allowed_ her to beat him. '_Hm,_' he thought to himself, '_4__th__ place, huh? I never really wanted title Rookie of the Year, while Sasuke wants to show he can be as good as his brother is. If Hinata is going to face me, she all but said she is going to forfeit. So, either let Sasuke beat me and have him rub it in my face as the Top Three are made #1 Genin Team, or lose to Ino now and let her go on to be in the Top Three, probably losing to Sasuke and Hinata near killing him to be named Rookie of the Year. Her dad would like that. Grrr... Decisions, decisions! I HATE making decisions!_' But just because he hated making them did not mean he wouldn't, and live with the consequences as well.

Ino was beginning to get tired and Naruto _still_ had not thrown a single attack at her this entire time. It was clear to everybody that he was just playing with her. Iruka wondered when his 'lil bro' had gotten so good. Ino was sweating by now and began to wonder if maybe Naruto really wasn't just blowing smoke earlier.

Finally, they stopped moving, Naruto on the opposite side of the ring from Ino, who was panting and sweating, looked like she'd barely be able to stay on her feet for much longer. Naruto considered again, then shrugged, thinking, '_Ah to hell with saving face. I was going to stop pretending after graduating anyway!_'

Suddenly, Naruto blurred to Ino's eyes, one second several feet away, an eyeblink later, right in front of her with a his hand raised, the pinky finger held back by his thumb. Then he flicked his pinky finger at her bandaged stomach and it felt like that time she when she was six years old and fell from the swing set on the playground and fell on the monkey bars, knocking the wind out of her for the rest of the day. This was actually worse as it sent her _flying_ out of the ring, _over_ the crowd of spectators and into a mudpool next to the building.

Naruto winced. He really needed to work on his aim. "Eh, sorry Ino-chan!" he called.

Ino would be pissed if she could actually breathe. Nothing was broken, just severely bruised, but it was more the realization that Naruto was _WAY_ more than he appeared to be! Forget revenge for humiliating her, if it had been Sakura, that was one thing, but what had just happened...

Ino slowly got to her feet, covered in mud and gasping for painful lungfuls of breath, staring through the parting crowd at her opponent, who Iruka was only now declaring the winner. She grasped her chest in pain, wincing as she finally made it to her feet. She saw Naruto just standing there, not even sweating, grinning wide and sheepishly scratching the back of his head in apparent embarrassment.

He was not what he appeared to be.

That scared her. That scared her a lot!

The idea formed in her head and her body was already acting even as she made the decision to go ahead and do it, though there was a tiny voice at the back of her mind, nagging her that it was _not_ a good idea and that she _shouldn't_ do it no matter what! Obviously, she ignored that tiny voice.

"_Shintenshin no jutsu_ (Mind Body Switch Technique)!" she formed the seal, centering it on Naruto's head. She saw his eyes widen and then she was taken by the technique and her next view was from his perspective as his eyes saw her body slump suddenly.

"_Now then, what _are_ you Uzumaki Naruto?_" Ino telepathically thought as she took control of his body.

"Wha-Ino! No! The match is over! You can't use ninjutsu outside of a match! Get out of Naruto's body right now!" she heard Iruka scream. The really weird thing was that she heard a _lot_ more than just him, and the crowd of students, and the people in the school, in the street, in the building three blocks from here, in the Hokage Tower, in the training grounds, at the Village Wall, and...

'_**ENOUGH**_**!!**' a mental voice cried out that barely sounded human to the invading mind.

'_Whu... What is this? What _are_ you? No one can hear this well! Or feel this! Or this! And... Oh my god! Your parents are the Hokage and Kushina-kouchou!_' Ino was stunned. Then she was thrown out.

To everyone else, they saw Ino slump and Naruto change his posture, but not really say anything. Then Iruka very quickly realized what had just happened and started shouting at 'Ino' in Naruto's body, who seemed to be ignoring him. Then the blond-haired blue-eyed boy's face scrunched up with a sudden anger and he shouted out loud in his own voice, "_ENOUGH!!_" Then he slammed his head forward like he was bowing or about to headbutt someone, in the next instant, Ino's body straightened so fast that it was like she'd really been headbutted, enough to send her back into the mud.

Everyone was stunned, not sure what to make of this strange event. Naruto was suddenly gasping and clutching his head, but what no one could see was that his eyes were a burning red. Literally, as the ground at his feet, where he was staring, scorched black and began to melt where there was stone.

When he finally had himself under control, breathing heavily and sweating as bad as anybody else now, Naruto turned to the teacher and asked, "I-Iruka-sensei? I... I think I'd like to forfeit the rest of the match. I... I need to rest after... after whatever that was just now."

"That was Ino using a technique she should not have, after the match was decided," Iruka informed him, turning angrily to the insensate girl. "I should disqualify her for trying something like that..."

"No, don't Iruka-sensei," Naruto stopped him. "Whatever... that was, it wasn't Ino's technique. It was... something else, something... threw her out of my mind. I don't know what it was, but... I need to rest."

Hinata was instantly by Naruto's side, almost glaring at Iruka as though he were the cause for her friend's pain. Iruka, startled more by Naruto's words than the Hyuuga girl's glare, decided to let the matter drop for now and marked down the scores, putting the final three that hadn't fought yet as having a tie. It was clear that with Naruto forfeiting, Hinata would as well, not wishing to leave his side. Without a final match, they all got an equal score. It would make things interesting, that's for sure.

Surprisingly, Sasuke did not make a big fuss when this was announced as Iruka called all the students back inside for the final portion of the Academy Exams. Ino was given time to clean herself up, though she kept staring at Naruto in awe, a look she normally reserved for Sasuke.

"Aw... crud," Naruto grumbled when he saw the looks.

"What is it Naruto-kun?" Hinata quietly asked as they walked inside.

"Ino knows," he whispered back to her, just as quiet. The white-eyed girl's eyes went wide. He quickly clarified, "About Mom and Dad. Especially about Dad." Hinata's eyes became less wide, but she also let slip a word that her father would be horrified to hear her utter.

"So, not about...?" she then made a single gesture rather than say anything else.

He shook his head, then shrugged. "I'm not sure. The clues were there, but my close-to-surface thoughts were about this morning, and before I met you and Sasuke, I was having breakfast with my parents. Before she got to... that, I... or maybe, You Know Who, kicked her out."

Hinata's eyes went wide again.

"So how's it feel to no longer be the Dead Last?" Sasuke asked, coming up on the other side of them.

"Pretty good so far," Naruto admitted, grinning from ear to ear. "How's it feel to still be Rookie of the Year? Same as ever?"

"I wouldn't know," Sasuke smirked back at him, then at Hinata. "Because we didn't get to fight and I didn't get to beat Hinata, all three of us got the exact same score in the Taijutsu portion, and we tied or averaged out in all the other portions. All that remains is the ninjutsu portion and the three of us can pass that without any difficulty whatsoever. In the end, there may not even be a Rookie of the Year."

"Oh, I wouldn't say anything just yet," Naruto sheepishly countered. "I still can't do the _Bunshin no jutsu_ to save my life! Although I wouldn't really need to in most cases..."

"What are you talking about, you know plenty of Bunshin jutsu!" Sasuke exclaimed.

"Yeah, I just mastered the _Kage Bunshin no jutsu_ for my last birthday," Naruto proudly admitted. "But I still can't do the _Bunshin no jutsu_. At all."

"You mean you can't... do the regular clone... at all?" Sasuke asked, stunned. "Wow."

"Yeah, weird huh?"

"Try messed up," Sasuke snapped at him. "You're the only person alive that I know that does things _backwards_! You learn advanced ninjutsu first and then backpedal! You learn every type of Bunshin jutsu that exists, but can't do the Academy standard. You learn three different types of transformation techniques; shapeshift, illusion, and standard, _in that order_! You say you learned an impossible version of the _Kawarimi no jutsu_ that switches you with your opponent after they've thrown an attack at you, _then_ you learned the standard! It's messed up!"

"Naruto-kun is a hard worker," Hinata commented.

"He's a fre—urk!" Sasuke was saying something and then stopped when Hinata ruthlessly jabbed him with a _J__ū__ken_ strike to the back, which paralyzed his entire body for three full seconds before letting him collapse to the floor and pass out from lack of oxygen to the brain, thanks to his heart stopping for three full seconds.

"Eh, heheheh, you're scary when you do that, Hinata-chan," Naruto uncomfortably stepped away from the paralyzed Uchiha.

"Hm, seems that I finally got that move right," she commented to herself, looking at her hand.

"Uhm... should we drag him to the class room?" Naruto wondered out loud, looking down at the prone form of Sasuke. Hinata shrugged, then calmly reached down, and began to drag the poor boy by his ankle up two flights of stairs to the class room where the Ninjutsu portion of the Exam would be held. Naruto looked on pitifully, feeling sympathy for his male best friend as he followed behind them.

TBC...


	22. Ad'Vin'Ta Challenge

Title:Ad'Vin'Ta series: "Stone Skin"

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:The whole BtVS thing goes to Joss and Mutant Enemy blah, blah, blah, you know the drill. As for anything and everything else, I'd like to say I came up with it myself, but truth remains it might very well have been inspired, or even copied, subjectively speaking that is, from other sources too numerous to list here.

Summary:Part Xander-gets-a-power, part Let's-start-an-epic-quest thing. Xander finds something in his attic, and it ain't the Family Photo album.

Rating:Mostly G, not even PG really, cause this is just like a cartoon almost with fantasy unrealistic violence, no foul language, and no "adult" themes of any kind.

AN:I've come to realize that I write stories with the intention of turning them into novels. This is my attempt at breaking that. Now I am most certainly not one to write a story with the /_intention_/ of leaving it hanging, so allow me to explain. This story is supposed to be short. It is supposed to be a story alone and by itself. Not a First Chapter, not a Prologue, or anything else like that. A single story, that will have a couple, if not several sequels to it, which will also undoubtedly be short, single stories.

Another thing, these devices that are the basis for this series, they're a great deal based on the Shen Gong Wu of Xiaolin Showdown, except based on technology instead of magic. Hope you like!

Read and Review, please:.

Story:

Xander played with the device in his hands, tossing it back and forth between them before looking more intently at it. Which was probably a mistake, for various reasons.

He was walking alone, past sunset, not yet fully night, and he lived on the Hellmouth and knew, and was known to know the Slayer, the supernatural mystically empowered guardian of said Hellmouth. Currently he was heading towards the High School Library where the Chosen One and her Watcher usually trained and discussed how she should save the world that week. At least that's the way Xander thought of it, it certainly happened often enough.

The device he was concentrating so deeply upon, he'd found in his attic just that afternoon, after his rather drunk father had slurred/demanded that he clean the attic and toss out "all that old junk" otherwise Xander wouldn't get his weekly allowance and would be grounded for the next week. His father may have been a drunk, but he was strict and knew exactly how to enforce such threats. So, for the past five hours, he'd been up in the cobwebs and the dust and the creaky, dark, and smelly attic, sorting through the boxes and deciding on what to keep and what to leave by the side of the road for trash pickup.

In one particular box, which had been full of odd trinkets, cool odd trinkets Xander thought, he'd found the device he was now holding. It was small, only about two inches across. It was a round golden disc, almost like a medal, but in the center were three black buttons, and it was thicker than just a medal, so it was definitely some kind of technology. Though whether it was an old fashioned 70s reject of a beeper or some kind of kids toy that flashed and made noises, he still hadn't been able to figure out.

Suddenly Xander stopped, an odd feeling making the hairs on the back of his neck go up. He looked up from the device in his hands and paled at what he saw.

No less than seven vampires, all in Hell's Angels biker apparel, were standing before him, grinning, with their game faces on. This was bad.

"Oh sh--" Xander cursed.

"You got that right," the vampire at the front of the group remarked and then just nodded his head and surged forward with the rest of the vamps in attacking him.

One of the vampires was a little too eager and hit Xander with enough force to send him flying more than ten feet, skidding on the pavement another five beyond that. Groaning in pain, Xander looked up as his death slowly approached.

Unconsciously, Xander had palmed the device in his left hand, cupping it to keep a grip on it. As he struggled to get to his feet, in the process, he slapped the device on top of his right hand, still struggling to get away.

At that moment, when the back side of the device hit his skin, something changed. A single green light came on and began flashing before halting and glowing steadily. In the back of his head, Xander could have sworn he heard a metallic voice echo.

"DNA Scanning Sequence Initiated. DNA pattern identified. DNA code locked. Analyzing status of Primary User. Warning! Status indicates extreme danger. Warning! Danger Level Increasing! Unit Activating!"

Just as he had gotten to his feet, Xander cried out in pain as he felt the device on the back of his hand, which he only now noticed wasn't falling or coming off, began to get _/really/_ hot! He watched, fascinated, and in too much pain to do much more than stand there staring, as the black part of the device began to glow white hot, white the gold disc slowly expanded in size, almost like it was melting itself into his skin, which it very well could be doing for all he knew.

Then the voice came back.

"Activation sequence initiated. Enhancing Primary User's nervous system. Enhancing Primary User's muscular system. Enhancing Primary User's vital organs. Initiating metamorphosis sequence."

As this happened, Xander felt the pain lessen, and several other tingling sensations before the white hotness began to spread, even farther than the gold disc had melted. He watched in stunned amazement as the burning white hot glow covered every inch of his skin, from arm to arm, from head to foot, and everything in between.

"Metamorphosis sequence complete. Activating Stone Skin Armor."

The gold disc disappeared, as suddenly Xander blacked out for a moment and felt another burst of pain before it rapidly disappeared, same as the initial pain had, but faster. And when he opened his eyes, everything was different.

The vamps came to an abrupt halt, the entire transformation taking less time than it took them to run the 15 feet to where Xander had lain. Staring, not sure whether to believe it or not, they took in the metallic behemoth that had suddenly appeared before them.

He was now well over 7 feet tall, and the first thing any of them noticed was that his skin was made out of a highly polished silver colored metal. Xander's hair, save that it too was now made of metallic wire strands, appeared to be the same, as were his clothes, which had been transformed as well to handle his sudden growth spurt.

The differences however were a lot more than just height and metal skin. His eyes were a solid yellow/gold/red color, shifting occasionally to reveal the pupils, but never for very long. He also was carrying more muscles than he'd ever had in his entire life up to that point, and around his shoulders were metal plate shoulder pads, matching with the plated steel-colored gauntlets that had become his forearms and hands.

_/What the hell?/_ Xander cried out. His mouth never moved or opened. But the vampires still heard him just fine.

"Shit, a shapeshifter!" the same vamp exclaimed. Then proved the eternal stupidity of all vampires by shouting immediately, "Get'em!"

_/Huh? What? Oh shit!!/_ Xander finally noticed the vampires attacking him anew, but was even more surprised than they were when all their attacks produced absolutely no result, save for Xander feeling small pressure against him. When one tried to bite him, it immediately recoiled, howling in pain as everyone could see the reason why. All of his teeth had broken the moment he'd tried to take a bite out of the metal-skinned behemoth.

_/No way/_ Xander muttered, still more surprised than the vampires. Then he realized what this meant, and now his mouth moved. Into a rather evil cocky grin that conveyed his meaning much clearer than any spoken threats could.

Grabbing one vamp by the top of his head, which Xander's hand could now actually fit around, he picked it up, and then squeezed, the same way he squeezed his Nerf ball at home. The vamp's head was crushed and exploded under the pressure, dust following soon after.

_/Very cool/ _Xander decided and turned his attention to the 6 remaining vampires.

"Run!!" the leader shouted. He was the first one Xander reached and far too easily ripped apart.

The massacre was short, brutal, and in a couple of cases even cruel. But most definitely deserved. Once the dust was blown to the four winds, Xander finally had time to think about what had just happened to him.

Then he looked at his right hand, and found only the steel-gauntlet his arm had become, no sign of the device he'd been carrying before.

_/Shit. Now what do I do? What is Buffy gonna do?/_ Xander moaned to himself. Then he jumped up and resumed his original course. _/Of course! G-man always has the answers! I just hope Buffy listens long enough that she doesn't break her hand./_

END "Stone Skin"

Title:Ad'Vin'Ta series: "Cool Armor"

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:The whole BtVS thing goes to Joss and Mutant Enemy blah, blah, blah, you know the drill. As for anything and everything else, I'd like to say I came up with it myself, but truth remains it might very well have been inspired, or even copied, subjectively speaking that is, from other sources too numerous to list here.

Summary:Part Xander-gets-a-power, part Let's-start-an-epic-quest thing. Xander found something in his attic, and now he's going to show it to the gang.

Rating:Mostly G, not even PG really, cause this is just like a cartoon almost with fantasy unrealistic violence, no foul language, and no "adult" themes of any kind.

AN:I've come to realize that I write stories with the intention of turning them into novels. This is my attempt at breaking that. Now I am most certainly not one to write a story with the /intention/ of leaving it hanging, so allow me to explain. This story is supposed to be short. It is supposed to be a story alone and by itself. Not a First Chapter, not a Prologue, or anything else like that. A single story, that will have a couple, if not several sequels to it, which will also undoubtedly be short, single stories.

Another thing, these devices that are the basis for this series, they're a great deal based on the Shen Gong Wu of Xiaolin Showdown, except based on technology instead of magic. Hope you like!

Read and Review, please:.

Story:

Buffy was training with Giles in the Library, going through the motions of attack and defense called a kata against imaginary opponents on the open mat while he watched with Willow from the sidelines.

Just as she was finishing up with a high kick, something very big burst through the double swing doors of the Library, and for a second she did a double-take, unable to entirely believe what she was seeing. Because it looked like somebody had built an 8-foot, solid steel Xander robot, and judging from the expression, it was panicking in a very Xander-way.

/_Giles! Buffy! Help! There were these vampires and they attacked me and I had been playing with this medal thing I found when I cleaned up my attic this afternoon and then all of a sudden it did something, or I did something, and then it turned me into this! Please, you gotta help me! Oh, and I'm really Xander._/ The Xander-bot babbled without actually saying anything.

"What . . . oh my word," Giles sputtered, immediately reaching up to take his glasses while Buffy and Willow just stared openly.

"Xander? Is that really you?" Willow asked, shocked.

The metal behemoth nodded, his expression becoming one of earnest apology, although his mouth remained tightly sealed.

"Wait a sec," Buffy went over what her friend had just babbled in her mind again, "Vampires? What vampires? And what happened to turn you into . . . /_this/_?"

/_Were you not listening, or could you really not hear me?_/ Xander asked, his expression changing to one of wounded annoyance. /_Yes, I was attacked by vampires on my way over here. Well, not really so much attacked as bumped into by accident. Then they attacked, which is sort of what vampires do, right? So I'm defending myself the best that I can, considering I only have the stake and cross I carry with me pretty much everywhere, so of course I'm getting my ass handed to me on a huge silver platter when I seem to fall in just the right way that this medal-thing I had in my hand somehow turned on and then it turned me into this! And I can't even begin to figure out how to change back since I don't know what I did to change in the first place!_/

"OK, first things first Xan," Buffy tried to calm the 8 foot metal behemoth, "You gotta calm down. We'll figure this out, just like we always do. And don't take this the wrong way, but you look like you could cause a lot of damage right now if you lost your cool, OK?"

Xander did seem to relax a bit at Buffy's words, but tension still radiated from him like heat from the sun. /_Sorry,_/ he apologized, his voice somehow communicating without any sound whatsoever, /_And it was kinda cool at first. I mean I totally wasted those vamps but . . . I can't change back!_/

"It'll be OK Xander," Willow instantly latched onto the metal giant, empathizing with him.

"Now Xander," Giles began, "first I need you to describe this device you claim that . . . that did, uh, this to you."

/_It looked like some kinda medal or something. It was only about so big,_/ Xander held out one huge fist and closed his pointer finger and thumb together, then frowned when the circle made by the action was apparently bigger than he expected it to be and squeezed his fingers even closer together until he felt it was the proper size and then continued, /_It was a gold color, but not real gold. And it had these black buttons on one side, but no matter how much I pushed them, they didn't do anything. The other side was like a suction cup, but still gold colored._/

"Do you have any clue as to how you managed to activate this . . . thing?" Giles asked, wondering if it might be some kind of magical artifact.

/_Well, I was pretty panicked, but . . . yeah! I remember! I accidentally slammed it onto the back of my right hand. Unfortunately . . ._/ Xander then held up his massive right fist, revealing no trace of the supposed device.

"Uh, Xander," Willow spoke up, always the most keen and observant of all things 'Xander', "Is that what you're talking about?" she asked pointing at his waist.

As they all looked, and there at his waist, like a tiny little belt-buckle, was the disk, the top side with the three black buttons visible, seemingly fused with his metallic skin. Amazed, Xander was speechless, and almost by instinct, he touched the topmost button. Instantly his vision was filled with a HUD that only he could see, the voice he'd heard when he'd been changed sounding again.

"Direct computer interface activated. Scanning... Primary User out of danger. Status stands at nominal. Would Primary User like to deactivate stone skin armor at this time? Yes/no"

/_Whoa!_/ Xander exclaimed as he focused on the 'Yes' option that had appeared on the HUD.

"Xander, what is it?" Buffy asked, concerned about her friend.

Instantly, like a reverse of what had changed him the first time around, the heat filled his body, though it was more like soft tingling this time, and he began to glow white all over, the voice back again.

"Initiating metamorphosis sequence. Deactivating stone skin armor."

When he could see again, he found himself looking from his normal chocolate brown eyes at his completely normal, non-huge and metal body, the disk back on the back of his right hand. Very quickly he pulled it off, glad that it came off without any problems.

"What happened?" Buffy demanded when she too noticed that Xander was back to normal.

"I'm not sure!" he exclaimed, dropping the device onto the table, all of them unconsciously backing away from it. "The second that I touched that button, some kind of . . . of, HUD popped up and asked me if I wanted to deactivate the Stone Skin Armor. Probably whatever the hell that thing is!"

"Stone Skin . . . armor . . ." Giles trailed off, his face suddenly going quite pale.

"Giles?" the three teens asked as one.

"Oh my word, I thought they'd been destroyed or lost centuries ago . . ." he muttered quickly going to the shelves where his 'private' books were kept, and continued to mutter things like, "Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear."

"Giles!" Buffy shouted, having lost patience with her Watcher. When he finally turned to give her any attention at all, she commanded, "Speak!"

"That device is one of hundreds, possibly thousands of devices that were thought lost centuries ago. Each one alone wielded incredible power, but the person or . . . entities that managed to control any significant number of them . . . it's nearly unimaginable," he explained.

"What is this thing?" Xander demanded.

"It's an Ad'Vin'Ta."

END "Cool Armor"

Title:Ad'Vin'Ta series: "Treasure in the Attic"

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:The whole BtVS thing goes to Joss and Mutant Enemy blah, blah, blah, you know the drill. As for anything and everything else, I'd like to say I came up with it myself, but truth remains it might very well have been inspired, or even copied, subjectively speaking that is, from other sources too numerous to list here.

Summary:Part Xander-gets-a-power, part Let's-start-an-epic-quest thing. Buffy, Willow, and Xander find some more interesting devices in his attic.

Rating:Mostly G, not even PG really, cause this is just like a cartoon almost with fantasy unrealistic violence, no foul language, and no "adult" themes of any kind.

AN:I've come to realize that I write stories with the intention of turning them into novels. This is my attempt at breaking that. Now I am most certainly not one to write a story with the /_intention_/ of leaving it hanging, so allow me to explain. This story is supposed to be short. It is supposed to be a story alone and by itself. Not a First Chapter, not a Prologue, or anything else like that. A single story, that will have a couple, if not several sequels to it, which will also undoubtedly be short, single stories.

Another thing, these devices that are the basis for this series, they're a great deal based on the Shen Gong Wu of Xiaolin Showdown, except based on technology instead of magic. Hope you like!

Read and Review, please:.

Story:

"So, much as I appreciate the help in cleaning out my attic," Xander commented as he, Buffy and Willow searched the small dusty room, "did Giles say /_specifically_/ what it is we're supposed to be looking for?"

"He said we'd know it when we found it," Buffy replied with a huff of annoyance. Clearly the Slayer too thought this was an enormous waste of time.

"Just like you found the Stone Skin Xander," Willow pointed out as she searched through one particular box.

"That was, first of all, an accident, and secondly, I just thought it looked cool and was going to keep it as kind of a good luck charm or maybe a paperweight," Xander retorted. "How the heck was I supposed to know it was really a piece of technology so advanced it's been cataloged as a magic armor of nearly unlimited power?"

"OR that it was equipped with equally advanced biometrics so that it was gene-locked to your specific DNA so that you're the only person that can use it?" Willow added with a smirk.

"Har de harr," he sneered back at her.

"Well, I'm not seeing much in the way of super-powered technology, but there's a lot of old cheap jewelry in here," Buffy commented pulling out an obviously fake 'gold' bracelet with a red jewel that was probably supposed to look like a big ruby in the center.

"Yeah, and the only 'technology' I've been able to find is this hand-held video game. Doesn't look like it works anymore, but I can't seem to find a place for the batteries," Willow said, holding up the black box that was about the size of a small novel with a small video screen on the upper half and a keypad of 16 buttons on the bottom half.

"Still, for cheap jewelry, it looks OK," Buffy said as she put it on her right wrist.

"Buff, you sure you should be doing that? After all, remember when I put this thing on," Xander held up the Stone Skin armor device as example.

"Relax Xan, it's just a piece of jewelry," the blond Slayer held it out to him. "It's not like it's going to transform and do something spectacular if I do this and say 'Activate'!" she giggled as she put her left thumb on the 'ruby' jewel as she said the word 'Activate'.

She could have eaten those words half a second later as the bracelet jumped suddenly and before she could even do anything, it seemed to open up before pieces of it spread out over her entire forearm and hand, while more pieces of gold metal seemed to sprout from nowhere to make up for what couldn't be covered by the slim piece of jewelry.

It all happened in just a few short seconds, but when it was over a golden ruby-encrusted armored gauntlet covered Buffy's right forearm, with the 'fingers' shaped more into talons, and what looked like a pair of nozzles on the top over the wrist and in the palm was a huge rounded and polished ruby, or some kind of jewel that looked like it had its own purpose.

"Or I could be wrong..." she whispered frightfully.

"Whoa!" Xander exclaimed in shock at the sight of a second Ad'Vin'Ta. "What do you think it does?"

"I don't know, but it looks more like some kind of weapon, instead of armor like the Stone Skin," Buffy answered, eyeing it carefully, but still making sure not to move her arm any more than necessary. "I didn't hear any kind of computer voice in my head, so this is obviously different. Wonder what it's called."

"It is called the Fire Cracker," Willow answered. "It is one of a pair of high-yield battle talons, designed for both close and mid-range combat, capable of augmenting or being augmented by any number of Ad'Vin'Ta. Primary attack weapons is the 'Strike Laser Claw' and the 'Plasma Fire' flamethrower unit."

"Uh, Wills . . . how did you know that?" the Slayer asked, turning with Xander to face their friend. And were plenty shocked to see her kneeling on the floor, her hands both holding onto the 'broken' video game, and her eyes staring blankly out into space even as her fingers blindly tapped on the keypad, which actually didn't have /_any_/ markings on them. Oh yeah, and her eyes were milky white and glowing too.

"Will?" Buffy whimpered at the sight her best friend presented.

"Willow?!" Xander was panicked and almost slapped on the Stone Skin to tear the little black box from her grasp if he had to, but thankfully Willow stopped him with her next words.

"I'm fine, I'm fine!" she quickly assured her friends, her fingers typing quickly on the keypad. "This is absolutely amazing though. This thing, this game . . . it's not a video game! It's one of the primary Ad'Vin'Ta, which by the way is both the singular and plural, but anyway this thing is a /_quantum computer_/! It does calculations and can perform functions and runs absolute circles around the best super computer out there today! Oh, and it also has a complete list on all of the Ad'Vin'Ta. Oh! And a scan function! This is so freaking cool, I can't even begin to tell you guys. By the way, Buffy, the Fire Cracker is like the Stone Skin in that it is gene-locked, only to your DNA now. Nobody else can use it."

"Well, Giles was right about one thing," Buffy muttered as she stared at her new weapon. "We'd know'em when we found'em."

END "Treasure In The Attic"

Challenge: Come up with some of your own Ad'Vin'Ta! Only limit is that they have to be technological _more_ than magical, but not _just_ tech at the same time. Doesn't even have to be Buffy-universe! Could be Naruto, Charmed, even Star Wars or Star Trek! Consider the concept open for use! Enjoy!


	23. Power Rangers: Slayer SLAYERS

**Power Rangers: Slayer**

Episode 3: _Slayers_

On the outer skirts of the city _Sunny Grove,_ a black jeep was traveling down the highway to enter the city. At this time of day, it was both surprising and not so much that it was the only car on the road, so it wasn't too much trouble when it pulled over to the side beside the large green highway sign that had printed in large white lettering, "Welcome to Sunny Grove, A place of Sunshine and Friendship!"

The black Jeep Wrangler slowly pulled up beside the sign, just a bit off the road. Once it was stopped, it sat idle for several more moments before the front passenger door opened and a person exited and walked around until she was standing there in front of the large sign, looking up at it.

The other two passengers, one the driver, got out themselves and shortly joined her. The girl, no more than 16, simply stood there passively, barely acknowledging the other two being there.

"We made it," she said quietly, as though like a prayer.

"Knew we would B," the brunette girl of same age said to the first girl, putting her hand on her shoulder.

"I promised I would look out for you two. I don't break my promises. I promised to get you here, even though I have no idea why you want to be," the third person paused and looked around before shivering and continuing, "_here_ of all places in the world. Why come here girls? From what I've heard…"

"We know what you've _heard_ Joyce," the first girl said sharply to the blond woman. "Most of them were lies and you know it."

The woman nodded and stepped forward, placing her own hand on the girl's other shoulder. "I know, I know sweetie."

The first girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She ducked her head when she felt a solitary tear escape her lids and roll down her cheek. Suddenly she looked up sharply, her sadness and pain forgotten completely.

"I can feel them," she whispered again.

The brunette nodded as she too felt her gut clench, as though with anxiety, but she really knew _which_ kind of anxiety drew this kind of reaction from her. The blond woman moved between the two teenagers, putting her arms around the both of them.

"Don't worry girls, I'll take as good care of you as possible, and I'll love you so much you'll be sick of me before the end of the week," the elder blond promised.

After a silence, the first girl, shorter than both of the other females, her hair a dark honey blond, falling loosely around her neck, turned around to appraise her new family. She looked up at the older blond, the woman that had sworn to protect them and take care of them. Even at the cost of her own life, and more.

"Can I call you Mom?" the young blond asked.

In reply, the woman was speechless. Yet as they watched, her eyes began to glisten as moisture began to run down her cheeks. Finally, the woman just nodded and embraced the girl, and was rewarded with a strong embrace from her newfound daughter.

"Mom?" the brunette repeated, her voice held an uncharacteristic tremble to it.

The woman just looked up, saw the pure innocence and longing in the second girl's eyes and held out her other arm, which was immediately filled with the brunette. "Oh, Faith, Buffy, my two little girls…" the woman whispered, enjoying the loving contact with her daughters.

After a short time, too short for the newly made family, Buffy, the short blond, pulled out of the embrace and looked at her sister and mother with a serious gait. "We need to get set up in this town. It won't be long before sunset, and we all know what happens then."

The other two nodded, understanding the seriousness of the warning.

"Joy-_Mom_," Buffy corrected herself in time, to the rewarding smile of the woman. "Is there anyway that we can get ourselves a residence. Nothing of public accommodations, but an actual house. And don't take this the wrong way, but it needs to be a place we can call a _home_. Do you understand?"

Joyce gave her daughter a teasing grin. "Ofcourse I understand dear. After all, I was a Watcher for most of my life. I understand as much about demons and vampires that you and Faith do. Probably more."

"Oh I wouldn't know about that Mom," Faith teased back, tapping the side of her skull. "Implanted knowledge and all."

Joyce returned the grin. "True. But I'm still better at researching."

"Amen to that!" both girls chorused.

Joyce giggled and began to direct them back towards the Jeep. "Come on girls, we've got a lot to do, and sadly, not much time to do it in."

"Yes _Mother_," the girls chorused again, making the phrase sound as pathetic and whining as possible. Like true teenagers. It was the most beautiful sound that Joyce had ever heard in her entire life.

Once they were back in the car, and driving the rest of the way into Sunny Grove, Buffy, the blond girl, looked at the woman driving them to their freedom, and their destiny. "Have you had any second thoughts, about what you're doing Mom?" she asked with concern.

Joyce Summers kept her eyes on the road as she nodded. "I have. But my only second thoughts are of how I could have been so blind. I know, I was raised in the Watchers, by my father, and then when Hank died, I took over for him…but still, to have been so blinded to what they were really all about…"

"The Watchers _are_ really about protecting this world Joyce," Buffy interrupted. She looked out the car window a bit wistfully. "It's just somewhere along the way the end began to justify the means, no matter what the cost. I don't blame you Mom, after all, you saved us from the Watchers."

"Yeah _Mom_," Faith added from the back seat, leaning forward to put her head between the two blonds'. "And not all Watchers are as bad as Quentin and the Council. Present company for example," Joyce blushed at the praise.

"Not ta mention the docs that actually refused to kill me when B proved to be the better between us." Faith added.

Buffy immediately turned in her seat and grabbed the brunette's hand. "Listen to me Faith," she spoke with passion, "You are not weak. I'm only stronger because I was a first generation, and therefore older and a bit more matured before you came out of the test tube. You're my sister, and I will never let anybody hurt you ever again. And I'm sure that you feel the same."

"Damn straight B," Faith patted the hand holding hers. "By the by, any more 'flashes' since we got to home sweet Sunnyhell? You said that the last time your psychic powers went active that they'd be dormant until we got here."

Buffy shook her head. "Nothing yet. But don't worry, I'm sure you'll be the first person to know if I get another vision."

Joyce cast a worried glance at her two new adoptive daughters, before returning her attention back to the road.

"What's wrong Mom?" Buffy asked, still staring out the car window.

Joyce bit her lower lip and took a deep breath as they stopped at a Stoplight. "It's…your…_extra_ powers Buffy. When…when they were being tested back in England…it was thought that one day, they, your powers…might, um, might actually…kill you."

Faith turned sharply and glared at their Watcher, a look like she was about to kill the woman in her eyes. Buffy just kept looking out the window. "I know," she said quietly. That turned both of the women's attention back to the young blond.

"H-how…?" Joyce stuttered.

"B! Why the hell didn't you tell me this!?" Faith demanded to know.

"Because I didn't want to worry you Faith," Buffy said, turning back to face her dark-haired sister. She held her "sibling's" eyes for a moment before Faith turned away, ashamed of her reaction against Joyce, the woman that had _saved_ them from the Watchers and was risking her own life answering the cloned girls' wishes. What might be their last wishes.

"Buffy! I want you to tell me right now how you know about the theories from the tests of your powers back in London. Or else I'm pulling this car over right now, and trust me missy, you don't want that to happen." Joyce threatened, switching paying attention to the road and glaring at the blond.

Buffy smiled rather Zen-ly and turned back to looking at the window. "My cell wasn't as "sound-proof" as some might like to have thought. Especially nearing the end days of our stay there. Plus…I saw the reports in my file when we hacked the main frame before we left. Remember Joyce, both Faith and I have photographic memories. All I needed was a glance to know everything the Watcher's think they know about me." Buffy added when Joyce looked up at her, startled.

Faith leaned back in the seat, smirking to no end. "Way to go B!" she congratulated, then whispering under her breath at a volume she was sure only Buffy could understand her at, "And it looks like Mama Joy is startin' ta take her role as "Mom" to heart. Sucks to be you right now."

"What are you whispering about back there Faith?" Joyce suddenly asked.

Faith's face fell as Buffy smirked herself and then Faith heard in her mind, _'Sucks to be you, _F._'_


	24. Körpertausch02

_Körpertausch 3:_

They spent the next two hours looking through every one of Giles' vast occult library before it was Giles himself who found the creature they were looking for. It was actually in one of the old Watcher diaries the reference, and in fact the whole story, was written.

"Oh dear," Giles said aloud after having confirmed the creature and reading a little bit more into it and it's motives. Unfortunately he had neglected to tell the others he had found what they were looking for, and they all looked up, surprised, when he spoke.

"Giles? Speak." Buffy commanded.

Giles looked up to reprimand they young man named Xander when as soon as he did, he remembered what had happened and held his tongue long enough to stifle his temper.

"I believe that I have found who, uh, attacked the two of you on patrol," Giles announced, letting everyone else drop their books. "Unfortunately, it would also seem, from this reading, to confirm his actions and perhaps even his reasoning for doing this. Much to my regret."

"Uh, G-man, isn't it a good thing when the books say why a demon did something? That way we can reverse it, or at least figure out how to stop the demon," Xander asked.

"He's not a demon, well, at least not the kind of demon you're thinking of Xander," Giles replied, rubbing his eyes under his glasses.

"He is actually a force of balance in the supernatural world, although neither wholly demonic, human, or otherwise, most have taken to labeling him as a Balance demon. His name is Jeremiah Fire-Eye."

"Cool name, can see where he gets it from," Xander commented, "Now why did he do this to Buffy and me, and how do we get it reversed? You don't actually have to answer in that order G-man."

"There is only one way to reverse the, er, switch as it were. And that is for Jeremiah to do so himself." Giles answered.

"He's done this before, hasn't he?" Buffy asked, his voice deathly serious and quiet.

"Yes. There is no pattern, except who his… who his victims are," Giles admitted, picking the book back up. "The spell that affected you, you two is called "_Körpertausch_". It's German, and simply translated it means "Body Switch". Only the caster can reverse it. And yes Buffy, Fire-Eye has used this spell before. On Slayers."

They all looked up at him, the shock clearly written on their faces.

"There are at least four other, er, victims noted. What was so interesting and disturbing at the same time is that each of these Slayers were known to be, well, rather like you Buffy, not conforming to the Council's will."

"So this Balance demon works for the Council!" Buffy exclaimed.

Giles immediately shook his head. "No. He works entirely alone. But what I was actually trying to get at was that each of these Slayers had friends Buffy. Just as you and Xander are. He switched the Slayer and her friends' souls, but given the particular spell, the normal consequences of doing so were averted. Unfortunately, in three out of the four cases, the Slayer and friend were killed shortly after, not because of Fire-Eye, but because of the Slayer's normal duties."

"What about the other case?" Xander asked, concerned.

"That was the case of the body switch being done between the Slayer and her Watcher. And the Watcher also happened to be the author of this book." Giles explained as he held up the volume of the Watcher's diary. "Jeremiah does this to test the strength of bonds between a Slayer and her support. It's explained that if the Slayer does not trust her allies, or vice versa, they are all doomed from the moment they meet. Beyond that, there is nothing more said about it, or Fire-Eye, only that he is the only one capable of reversing the spell, and that he did so for these two."

Buffy sighed, and then stood up and started pacing, before he finally asked, "OK, so first thing we've got to do is find out where this Balance demon guy is and then find out what sort of test we have to pass, and then demand him to set things right."

"Well, er, yes, that is one way of looking at it," Giles tentatively agreed, also not used to this more aggressive "Xander".

"In a hurry to get your body back Buff?" Xander asked, the smirk that had been there before now gone from her face.

"Oh don't even go there fantasy boy!" Buffy snapped, angry.

"Oh bring back, bring back, bring back my body to me, to me!" Xander sang, a full joker-smile coming to his face.

"Xander! Don't sing!" Buffy demanded.

"Why? You have a lovely singing voice Buff," Xander commented, making a few singing exercises with Buffy's soprano voice.

Buffy rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, huffing angrily. "All right, all right. You know, giving me high blood pressure is no way to treat my body while you're in it Buffy," Xander commented and sat down, quitting the antics.

Buffy stopped to consider for a moment, and then sighed again and nodded. "I'm sorry, it's just… I _hate_ it when stuff like this happens."

"Well, yes, but you've never been quite so…" Giles paused, looking for a word, "vocal in your dislike before Buffy. In fact the only time I have ever seen Xander upset at all is when you or Willow are in danger."

"Even you're usually calmer than you've been for the past couple hours Buffy," Willow observed. "What gives?"

"I don't know!" Buffy shouted, still pacing. "I, it's, I feel like, I don't know, I can't explain it. Ever since the cemetery I've been feeling… aggressive, I guess?"

"Well good for you, because I want to know why I've been craving chocolate for the past hour," Xander commented. At the looks she received she added, "Seriously. I mean I knew you girls were in for chocolate, but come on! I've barely been able to think of anything else!"

Buffy sighed and shook his head. "I'll go to Willy's see if he knows anything about this Fire-Eye guy," he said, planning on walking out the door. Before he'd taken two steps though, Xander spoke up, "Uh, Buff, shouldn't, well, *_I*_ be the one to go talk to Willy, since, you know, *I'm* the Slayer and all?"

Buffy turned and glared at her, enough to make the two girls present cringe a little. "_You_ are not the Slayer Xander. *I* am!"

"No," Xander corrected, "_You're_ the Slayer's friend and construction worker. I got the bod, I'm the Slayer." Willow noticed that, as Buffy had sometimes, Xander was trying to hide her smile, and failing somewhat.

"You're enjoying this Xander!" the redhead accused.

"Am not!" the blonde immediately fired back.

"Yes you are! You like not only being a girl, but being a Slayer to boot!"

Rather than continue to deny, as Buffy might've done, the blonde just blushed bright red, and the smile she had been trying to hide came out fully as she ducked her head in shame. "Maybe just a little," she admitted.

"You are not the Slayer Xander!" Buffy was adamant.

"It, is quite possibly true Xander, that Buffy is still the Slayer, no matter what body she has," Giles offered. Willow and Xander just turned and gave him, 'Are you serious?' looks. He elaborated, "Fire-Eye transferred your _souls_ Xander. For all accounts and purposes, Buffy, through to her soul, is the Slayer. It is very likely that the powers of the Slayer are attached to her soul as much as her memory is."

"Uh huh," Xander commented, and leaned over and picked up the letter opener on Giles' desk. Then, with barely even looking, she threw it streaming less than an inch past Giles' ear, to stick through a fly on the wall, and at least four inches into the drywall wall. Then, with no other comment, walked over to the stairs up to Giles' bedroom, and as easily as picking up a soda out of the refrigerator, tore one of the wooden rail beams off and held the impoverished stake in her hands, a smug look on her face.

"Oh I don't believe this," Buffy cursed, hanging his head.

"Perhaps that is why only one out of four Slayers and friends ever survived this test," Willow observed.

"Yes, of course!" Giles started. "Any Slayer that has an ally and fights with her friends, according to any Balance demon's sense of logic, should have trained her friends to fight as well, or even better than herself. And when those friends were switched with the Slayer, they had the power, but no training, and even the Slayer with her training, in the body lacking the power…"

"Died?" Xander asked, sounding almost panicked.

"Er, well, yes, so it would seem," Giles admitted.

"Well, thanks a lot Buffy!" Xander cried, sounding like Xander in any panic-worthy situation, but it quickly became more than that as she continued. "Four and a half years we've known each other, known you were the Slayer, we've even helped you avert an apocalypse or two. We even spent that summer you left over Angel guarding the Hellmouth because you couldn't, and because we had no actual training, which you could have insisted Giles train us the same he was training you, or even given us some basic self defense training, and god alone knows how much we needed you that summer, Willow most of all! We don't have your power Buffy, so yeah, Giles and this Jeremiah Fire-Eye guy are right, we _should_ have had even _more_ training than you! Instead we've had to be afraid, weak, and nothing but simple-minded idiot zeppos while only being your support whenever you got your feelings hurt by Deadboy and the brainless dick Parker! And can somebody _please_ tell me why I'm crying?"

Halfway through her second run-on sentence, Xander had started shouting, and moisture had gathered at her eyes until they spilled over into full tears, while her voice kept getting more and more emotional.

Buffy, who normally would have shouted back to start a full-blown argument, didn't. Instead he looked very concerned, a mask of pure sympathy and almost physical pain on his face. "Xander…" he whispered, "I had, I had no idea you felt that way about, about things."

"Yeah, well, at first I was just gonna stop with a pathetic jibe about me being the Slayer and you get to see how it feels to be normal guy for a while, but then all of a sudden all these, (_sob_), feelings started to well up and I couldn't stop what I was saying and, and, and I…" all of a sudden she collapsed into tears.

Buffy didn't know what was happening. Normally, his pride would have never let Xander get away with saying those things to him, but instead of reacting, he just stood there and took it, saving each little fact away in his mind, taking the punishment. And then, when Xander started to cry, a sharp pain erupted in his chest, and when she collapsed into tears, it felt like a solid blow had exploded against his stomach, making it hard to breathe. All he knew was that he wanted to make the girl in front of him stop crying, because it almost physically hurt to see her cry at all.

"Xander, no, don't cry, I mean, I, I, I," Buffy began to stutter, and the look of total helplessness on his face was almost funny, except of course there was a crying Slayer to deal with first.

"Xander," Willow took the crying blonde in her arms, "tell me, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"I-I-I-I-I d-d-don't kn-n-know," Xander stuttered. "I just, I feel weird, just really weird!" Then she dissolved back into tears.

"Well," Willow was beginning to feel some of that helplessness Buffy was obviously feeling, "why don't you tell me exactly what you're feeling and we can help you figure out what's going on?"

"Ok," Xander replied, perfectly doing the pout that Buffy had been trying to do earlier.

When she had gotten herself enough under control, she began to speak again, "I, I was feeling… angry, scared, and then that's when things got weird and it was like my emotions suddenly became like a thousand times more potent, and the angrier I got, the more scared I got, and then I felt guilt, and shame, and then jealousy, fear, and all through it I was just confused, confused out of my head. You know how you used to get when everybody's attention was on you? Well I suddenly felt like that, only like everybody was looking at me because I was supposed to tell them what to do, only I'm still so confused I don't know what to do and…"

Xander suddenly stopped talking and all emotion went out of her face. "I just babbled didn't I?" she asked monotone.

Willow nodded, but Buffy was staring at her, partially confused, and mostly concerned. Giles was just plain confused.

"I… I'm not sure, but I… think I have a clue as to what is going on," Buffy finally said. All eyes were on him, and he unconsciously gulped slightly and then seemed to puff himself up some.

"It came to me when Xander described how he…"

"She," both Xander and Willow corrected. Buffy glared for a moment, but accepted and used the correction.

"…how _she_ was feeling just now. Because about ninety percent of the time, that is _exactly_ how I feel. You don't think it could be a side effect of the spell, do you? I mean, emotions, that's part of the soul, right Giles?"

Giles had that, 'I'm thinking' look on his face, and slowly began to nod in agreement with Buffy. "Yes, but I think it's not the emotions you are feeling that are different, just the intensity," he said. "Most people's emotions are greatly affected by, er, hormones and other bodily chemicals. The difference between male and female hormones alone would be enough to confuse the both of you, but in Xander's case, I think it may be a bit more… supernatural. And no, it's not the spell, per say Buffy, but I think it is a side effect of the Slayer powers. Unless of course you're known for taking mood altering drugs Buffy, that is the only explanation I can fathom for Xander's sudden outburst."

"Well if that's true…" Xander suddenly spoke up, and she looked up at Buffy, "…how do you handle it Buffy? I mean… my god, the intensity alone was enough to send me reeling, nothing to say of all the crap you deal with on a daily basis!"

Buffy shrugged, his face remaining somewhat neutral. "Most of the time I don't. Rest of the time… I have you guys."

"Aww," Xander and Willow said at the same time, both had an almost identical look on their face. All of a sudden Xander shook her head and held it. "Oh god I can't deal with this! Next thing you know I'm going to start watching chic movies and talking about the guys in them and their butts and their hair and… Or I could talk about the women and _their_ butts and… other things…" Xander's eyes glazed over for a minute or two.

"I am so glad I can't read minds anymore," Buffy muttered, falling back on the couch.

"Ugh! Well, if Willy's is out, and it's too late to even bother with another patrol, I'm beat. C'mon Wills let's go home and sleep," Buffy said getting to his feet.

Willow squeaked, her eyes wide, causing Buffy to stop and Xander to snap out of lala land.

"Buffy… we're in the girls' dormitory," Willow said.

Buffy just stood frozen to the spot, his eyes blinking dumbly before the fact made itself all too clear to both Buffy and Xander. Xander's eyes glazed over again.

"I think shower time just became my favorite past time," Xander commented, a perverted smirk on her face.

"Xander you are _**not**_showering in my body!" Buffy loudly exclaimed.

"But I usually tend to stink after a day or two Buff, and now that I'm the Slayer, I'm thinking I'll definitely be needing that shower time," Xander innocently observed. "And I don't mind if you shower or bathe or whatever in my body. In fact I must insist that you daily wash my body."

Buffy squinted his eyes dangerously at the not even veiled innuendo.

"Xander," Willow said too-sweetly right next to her. Xander froze, her face suddenly going pale. "You will wear a blind fold and _I_ will be there to make sure you wash, and not… anything else. Understood?"

Xander nodded quickly, knowing from painful experience to _never_ mess with Willow when she used that tone. "Completely," she added for good measure. "Good," Willow replied.

"So where am I supposed to stay?" Buffy suddenly asked.

Xander winced. Now way on earth, heaven, or hell would she ever wish or allow Buffy to spend any time at all in the Harris household, one night or otherwise. Especially not in her old body.

"Well, what about Joyce's? She's put me up before, especially when we had sleepovers. Tomorrow's Thursday, and you don't have any classes on Friday, so…" Xander started to say.

"Omigawd! Classes! I completely forgot about school! What are we gonna do? I can't miss class!" Buffy began to all out panic.

"Buffy! Calm down, I'll go to your classes, and take notes. I mean, you don't have a test over the next few days, do you? Do you?" Xander began to get a bad feeling when both Buffy and Willow grew sour expressions on their faces.

"Tomorrow, Professor Walsh. Quiz over Freud," Buffy answered glumly. "And I still haven't studied hard enough."

"Oh, Freud I know, don't worry," Xander assured.

"Xander, this is Professor Walsh. I don't care how much you studied that book on Freud's findings about sex, unless you've been to her class for the past 10 weeks, you will not be able to pass this quiz," Willow assured all of them. Xander just shrugged and replied, "You could always help me cheat Will."

Rather than scolding her on the wrongness of cheating and a lecture on doing the work and not 'cheating' yourself, Willow's eyebrows suddenly shot upwards. Xander shared a concerned look with Buffy, who mirrored it back, (note the irony in that statement alone), just before Willow announced, "I've got an idea…"


	25. Missing Hokage: Ichi

Title:The Missing Hokage : Ichi

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:Naruto is published by Shounen Jump Magazine, and the creator doesn't know what to do with his own creation so instead of hiring Ghost Writers to make it more interesting, he "focuses" on other characters that nobody cares about. This story is in response to Perfect Lionheart's "Missing Hokage" challenge.

Summary:Danzo works to get Naruto banished. Tsunade finds out and heads it off by giving the Council an ultimatum: Keep Naruto in Konoha, or she leaves with him. They banish him.

Ichi: Banishment

Five cloaked figures stood on a hill. One of them looked back. The others stopped, waiting for the one.

The road turned and twisted between the tall trees, but the gate and the mountain beyond the gate were still visible. The one figure turned fully back, facing the direction, the place they had all just come from.

"Come on, Dobe," the more impatient of the others snapped at him.

Uzumaki Naruto pulled back the hood of his cloak, revealing his short, yellow-blond hair and bright blue eyes. Eyes that normally sparkled with joy and excitement, were filled with sadness and a deep longing at the moment. He just stood there, staring back at their home, Konohagakure, the Village Hidden In The Leaves.

"I... was going to be... Hokage..." he croaked, his throat tight with emotion.

"Ano..." the more diminutive of the figures behind him spoke, stepping forward to touch his shoulder, she said, "Naruto-kun always... you always try your hardest and, and you do your best, always. I... I believe, Naruto-kun, that it isn't just the title of Hokage that you wanted. You wanted to do your best to protect everyone from heartache, to make everyone acknowledge you for who you are, not what you are, and that you only wish to protect those precious to you. Just... just because you can no longer be Hokage... does not mean that you cannot still do these things."

Naruto continued to just stare back at their home village in silence.

"Naruto..." the taller of the cloaked figures called, her voice cracking a bit.

"No Shizune," the other, larger figure interrupted her companion, "Let him say his goodbyes. I said mine a long time ago, but... Just let him be."

"Hai, Tsunade-sama," the cloaked Shizune nodded once.

They waited for another minute before the first figure lost his patience once more. "How long are we going to stand here gawking at a place none of us want to see again?"

"Why?" Naruto croaked at him.

"What?"

"Why are you even here, Sasuke?" he repeated with more intensity. "You only wanted power, remember? To kill a certain man, that's what you said. You're the reason that I, that all of us are in this mess! If you'd stayed behind, you probably could have convinced the Council and Danzo-teme into giving you whatever you wanted; clan secrets, every girl in the village, anything and everything! So why are you _here_?!"

Uchiha Sasuke was silent in the suddenly tense atmosphere between them. The hood of the cloak twisted around, showing him glancing back and forth between Tsunade and Naruto. Quietly he asked, "Do you remember? Do you remember how our fight ended, Naruto? Not how it began, but how it ended?"

"Yeah..." Naruto nodded, turning back to face Konoha as his memory drifted back to two weeks ago.

_Valley of the End_

_Two Weeks Ago_

"CHIDORI!"

"RASENGAN!"

The two attacks formed.

One in the hands of a gray-skinned, winged monstrosity. As the lightning chakra became visible, he readied the attack and it shifted spectrum from lightning-blue, to a grayish-black energy that matched his mutated skin.

The second in the hands of a feral blond boy wearing an orange jumpsuit, and covered by bubbling red chakra that shaped itself into that of a humanoid fox. In his hands, a spiraling bluish-reddish purple orb formed and solidified into a perfect sphere.

The first sounded like a thousand chirping birds, the second like a high-powered turbine engine at full throttle. It was only a heartbeat between the instant the two attacks were formed and their creators launched themselves at each other, intent on using their respective attacks to stop or kill the other. The fox-cloaked blond leapt high, higher and faster than any normal human could ever comprehend. At the exact same instant, the winged mutant lifted off and flapped only twice before diving right at his opponent. They met in the exact center of the waterfall.

"_**CHIDORI/RASENGAN**_!!" A final cry went out as their attacks met.

A hundred thousand different ways this single event where the outcome could be different. This time, Naruto had a moment of inspiration and adjusted his target accordingly. After the Chidori and Rasengan had canceled each other out, he grabbed Sasuke's wrist with one hand, and then with the other rapidly punched him across the face, torso, chest, stomach, both shoulders, all without letting go of the other boy's wrist once. They fell a hundred feet, the Fox's Cloak fading from around Naruto, and the Level 2 Curse Seal Form reverting back to Sasuke's normal body. Still, Naruto did not let go of Sasuke's wrist, though he did stop punching him.

By the time they hit, thankfully in the water, Sasuke was unconscious and Naruto was nearly so. Nevertheless, the blond had enough energy to drag both himself and his wayward teammate back to the surface and onto the shore. Once they were on the rocky ground and out of the water, it started to rain, almost making it moot. Naruto started to laugh as they lay there. The rain woke Sasuke up and he regained consciousness.

Feeling that he was completely out of chakra and couldn't even move, Sasuke turned to the source of laughter and saw Naruto laying there beside him, staring right back at him.

"D-d-d... dobe? Wh-why...?" he started to ask, but it seemed like he was too weak to even do that much. "Why... did you... stop me? Why didn't... you let me... go? After... all this? Why didn't you just kill me?!"

Naruto started laughing again, a bit of hysteria in it this time.

"Stop laughing!" Sasuke shouted, getting some, but not nearly enough of his strength back. "Stop laughing and answer me! I tried to kill you! Why... why didn't you just... kill me?"

Naruto finally managed to get his laughter back under control, and sat up, feeling his chakra already naturally regenerating itself, as well as most of his wounds. He looked down at the dark-haired boy and answered his question.

"Baka. You said that we're alike, that I became strong because I was lonely. That we both became strong because we had bonds that were broken prematurely. Baka! It's not breaking bonds that makes you strong! It's having them in the first place, and fighting to keep them! That's why I'm stronger than you, teme. You were fighting to break our bonds in exchange for power. I was fighting for those bonds with all my strength. Even if you had beat me, I never would have let you go, because I... because your my best friend too, and I refuse to lose that bond. I refuse to ever lose any of my precious people. So whine and complain all you want, because you're never getting rid of me!"

Sasuke stared, his eyes wide, filled with shock, surprise, understanding, and awe.

Naruto suddenly surged to his feet, almost lurching a bit, but just managing to keep his balance. Once he was sure of himself, he formed a familiar hand seal and called, "Kage Bunshin no jutsu!"

Two shadow clones popped into existence on either side of the prone Uchiha, and then slowly and carefully picked him up. Unlike the real Naruto, these clones appeared perfectly healthy and full of energy, able to support and carry him with ease.

"Let's go home," Naruto stated, receiving nods from the clones and all four of them leapt away.

_'Home...'_ Sasuke thought to himself as he was carried back to the place of his birth. One thing was already certain to the youth, Konoha was no longer his home, but he still wasn't too certain on where, or rather _who_ his home was truly with. But he was starting to get an idea.

_One Mile Out From Konoha_

_Present_

"You said, 'Let's go home'," Sasuke repeated those words. "I already knew then that Konoha was no longer my home. But the other things you said... I'm not an idiot. I know what Orochimaru wants with me, and what he'd probably do, but I like my prospects of being exiled with you more than I do of training with him."

"Yeah, that sounds reasonable," Naruto said. Sasuke relaxed, but tensed when the exile continued, "But it doesn't really sound like a reason that you'd go for. Plus, you're hardly ever reasonable when it comes to your revenge. So what's the real reason you're here?"

"..." Sasuke refused to speak further.

"Fine, whatever," Naruto growled at him, still staring back at Konoha in the distance.

"Ano... Naruto-kun..." Hinata started to say something.

Naruto rounded on her, his eyes blazing and surprisingly moist. "And what about you Hinata? Why are you here? You're the heir to the Hyuuga clan! And you're just some weird girl that turns red and faints a lot! Why are you following me into exile?! Why are any of you coming with me?!"

Hinata looked hurt for only a second, before she realized that Naruto was hurting much worse than her, and she rushed to comfort him, with her words if not her touch.

"I... I am here, N-Naruto-kun, because," she started, then took a deep breath and continued, "because of you. You, you are very important to me Naruto-kun. I, I admire you, and wish to be like you. My father... my father is the Head of the Hyuuga Clan, and sometimes he can be cruel, though he does not mean to be."

Naruto blinked, stunned. "Hi-Hinata..." he stuttered.

"After the mission was completed," there was no need to say which mission, "Father told me of a Council meeting that took place the night after you and the others were brought back along with Sasuke. Several things were decided. My father, along with a majority of the clans, opposed the decisions made. Unfortunately, the majority of the clans, was not a majority of the Council, and could not overturn the vote. When... when Tsunade-sama came to me the day after, I immediately accepted her offer, and my father, when he later learned of it on his own, also agreed."

"I, I don't understand," Naruto was confused.

"I think I should explain about some of the arrangements I've made on your and our behalf, Naruto," Tsunade spoke up. "Remember after I left you that first night at the Hospital? The day after the mission?"

Naruto slowly nodded his head, looking up at the taller blond. "Yeah, there was an ANBU messenger, they said something about a Council meeting?"

Tsunade nodded her head. "That's where this all began..."

_Konoha Council Chambers_

_10 Days Ago_

Tsunade slammed the doors to the Council Chambers with her full strength, blowing them off their hinges, and all but completely destroying them in the process. "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!!" she demanded the moment she stepped through the vacated door frame.

"Tsunade," a heavily bandaged old man at the center of the room spoke, "What are you doing here?"

"I ASKED FIRST DANZO-TEME!" she shouted, stomping her way over to the spot reserved for the Hokage. "So a better question, since my first was too complicated. What are all of _you_ doing here? There is no scheduled Council meeting! Then I hear from ANBU that there is a full session in progress. Why was I not notified, and what gives any of you the right to call a full Council without the authorization of the acting Hokage?"

"We are merely doing our part in acting for the better interests of Konoha," Danzo answered her.

Tsunade had a big tick mark for the next few seconds, her fists clenching and unclenching, her eyes hard. "Danzo. Shut. Up. I want an answer to my questions. _NOT_ from Danzo. From the Council."

Silence.

"I would like it before it's past the bedtime for the older members of this Council," she shot a glare at the two elders, who'd come up to defend Danzo.

"The Council," Hyuuga Hiashi stood to speak, "was discussing the results of the mission to retrieve Uchiha Sasuke from his abductors..."

"I'm sure the Council is referring to the Sound Five, Orochimaru's personal bodyguards that were sent to retrieve the Uchiha, and whom he willingly went with before turning around and attacking his fellow Konoha shinobi rescuers?" Tsunade interrupted with a pointed glare.

"... Yes," Hiashi acknowledged and then sat back down.

"It is the opinion of the Council..." Danzo started to say, but he was interrupted by several coughing fits, grunts, and hisses from certain specific members of the Council, a number of them Clan Heads. Hastily, the old man corrected himself, "Of a majority of the Council, that Uzumaki Naruto, in his efforts to rescue Uchiha Sasuke were excessive. Perhaps to the point of criminal behavior."

"..." The Council chambers were suddenly filled with such enormous Killing Intent that many of them began to fear for their lives. Only those that were experienced ninja managed to handle it with any degree of control, most of the civilians shivering in terror. "...What was that?" Tsunade growled.

Danzo continued, "It is the opinion of... a majority of the Council, that Uzumaki needlessly attacked and severely injured Uchiha Sasuke, almost crippling him, when he did not have to."

"Uchiha Sasuke _attacked him_!" Tsunade shouted back. "I took their report myself not six hours ago! What was he supposed to do? Restrain him? With what! Naruto was outright attacked, and he held back as much as he could, and even then the Uchiha did not hold back at all, he..."

"Was under the influence of Orochimaru's Cursed Seal," Danzo interrupted.

"Which is a convenient excuse when the Uchiha is back in Konoha, but is a very different story when he's running straight into Orochimaru's arms!" Tsunade shouted back.

"But he is in Konoha," Homura, one of the Elders of Konoha, said.

"Thanks to the special efforts of the one you are now calling a criminal, Uzumaki Naruto!"

"Yes," Koharu, the other Elder, slyly remarked, "About those... special efforts..."

"What are you implying?" Tsunade growled, warning.

"We are implying that Uzumaki Naruto went too far, and having only the words of two genin, one of them under duress, and the other a source of... contention," Danzo spoke, "The Council would question what really happened at the Valley of the End after Uzumaki chased Sasuke-kun there. Who really attacked first? Who fought who? And did it really end the way Uzumaki is claiming it ended? Perhaps he truly tried to kill the last loyal Uchiha and was stopped by the timely arrival of Hatake Kakashi and the retrieval ANBU."

"That is absurd!" Tsunade screamed in protest.

"It does raise some valid questions, however, Tsunade-hime," Koharu said.

Tsunade glared at the omission of her title as Hokage, but held her tongue. For the moment.

"Explain," she demanded.

"Just before you... entered," Danzo told her, "the Council was coming to a final vote between the two decisions available. To sentence the Uzumaki to death..."

"I WON'T ALLOW IT!!" she screamed, jumping to her feet.

"...or exile. His guilt has already been decided, it was merely the punishment that needed deciding."

"When he's not even conscious to defend himself," Tsunade growled, clenching her fists as she resumed her seat. "I repeat my earlier question. What gives any of you the right to call a full Council meeting, and then decide the fate of one of my ninja _without_ my consent, knowledge, or even the semblance of a trial?"

"You were busy," Danzo stated simply.

"So you went behind my back?!" she screamed.

"You said that she was made aware of this meeting!" one of the clan heads accused the Elders.

"It already has the seal on it, and the documents sent into law," Danzo grinned in that fake way of his. "There is only the punishment to decide. I vote for death."

"Death," Koharu and Homura said together.

"EXILE!" the entire rest of the Council said as one, even the ones that had been on the fence before Tsunade barged in. No one else voted for the death penalty.

"What... have you done?" Tsunade asked the Elders.

"The sentence was passed, there is no way to reverse it now. And the Council has voted. Uzumaki Naruto is hereby exiled from Konoha. He has one week to leave, otherwise..." Danzo was saying.

"Naruto can barely move, let alone walk!" Tsunade shouted at him. "How do you expect him to leave under his own power?"

"Two weeks!" Hiashi called, hopefully preventing a bloodbath worse than the Uchiha Massacre, or even any of the Great Shinobi Wars. "That is the maximum time from date of sentencing that one has to leave and make preparations. Two weeks."

"Yes! Agreed! Two weeks! Yeah, give the kid a chance! Troublesome..." the whole Council agreed.

"Very well then," Danzo looked unhappily around the room. "Uzumaki has two weeks from tonight to leave. Otherwise, the sentence will automatically revert to the alternative."

Tsunade stood, glaring at the bandaged old fool the entire time, then turned and stomped out of the Council Chambers, her heels clacking angrily the whole way.

She immediately went to her office, and screamed at the top of her lungs in frustration and pent-up anger. Then she called for Shizune, and began to explain her idea, which she'd had only a few moments after Danzo started speaking. If Konoha wanted Naruto to leave, then that was fine with her. She'd go with him...

_Present_

"Yeah, Jiraiya told me about that," Naruto mumbled. "Exile or death. No one on the Council wanted to be manipulated into killing me. Or they just hated being manipulated in the first place."

"Probably, but that was only the beginning," Tsunade told him.

"Tsunade-sama and I spoke for the rest of the night," Shizune said. "The next morning, I got started on getting everything ready and putting our plan into motion."

_Hokage Tower_

_9 Days Ago_

"Are you sure about this Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked her mistress.

Tsunade paused to consider, then gave Shizune a look that the medical apprentice very rarely saw on her teacher. A look of decision and absolute certainty. Nodding, she said nothing else and immediately started to gather the things around the Hokage's office and the required paperwork for what Tsunade had just asked of her.

"The All-Purpose Pardons, the Promotion List, the Apprentice Notices, Artifact Retrieval Permission Form, the Official Heir Statute, the Inheritance papers and the authorizations for withdrawal of funds from the treasury," Shizune listed as she placed each item on the desk before Tsunade.

"Heh, heh, heh. I, Senju Tsunade, Fifth Hokage of Konoha, hereby pardon myself, Shizune, Naruto, Hinata, and the Uchiha bastard from all crimes, obligations, and legal affiliations with Konoha and Hi no Kuni. I, Senju Tsunade, Fifth Hokage of Konoha hereby promote Hinata, Naruto, and the Teme's Love Interest to chuunin, probationary for the Uchiha. I, Senju Tsunade, hereby take Hinata and Naruto as my apprentices, and declare Shizune able to take her own apprentice and have Sasuke, the Last Uchiha assigned as her first apprentice. I, Senju Tsunade, Fifth Hokage of Konoha, hereby decree that Jiraiya is to be the next Hokage in the event that I am unable to perform my duties to Konoha. I, Senju Tsunade, Head of the Senju Clan, do hereby decree that Uzumaki Naruto is now my heir and the heir of the Senju Clan in addition to whatever inheritance he may have from his father and mother. I, Senju Tsunade, Fifth Hokage of Konoha, do hereby claim any and all special artifacts belonging to the previous Hokages, not already given as inheritance to their heirs, and Konoha itself as acting Hokage. There, that should do quite nicely."

"Here," Tsunade handed her aid a note while stamping the already written-up proclamations. "Go to the treasury and withdraw that amount under that name. Then go and collect half the long term A-Rank missions from the Missions Office. Then go back to the treasury and withdraw _that_ amount under _that_ name, then back to the Missions Office and collect half the long term B-Rank missions. Then go back and and withdraw that amount and then that amount under those names respectively. Then go and collect _all_ the long term C-Rank missions. Finally, go back to the treasury and withdraw the Senju Holdings and close all my accounts. _All_ of them, Shizune. We're not coming back this time."

Shizune nodded, then sweat-dropped at all the running around she'd have to do, before looking at the notes Tsunade had handed her. "Uzumaki, 1,500,000 ryo... Namikaze, 20,000,000 ryo... Hyuuga, 2,500,000 ryo, Fifth Hokage, (well they'll only let me take out so much, so...) 1,000,000 ryo. Uchiha... 25,000,000 ryo... And the Senju Holdings... 50,000,000 ryo..." Shizune gulped, having never _imagined_ that much money even existing, let alone being held by her. She raced to get her errands done as quickly as possible.

"Meanwhile," Tsunade said to herself, "I have some... things to collect. Jiraiya!" she called out.

"Did you have to make me the next Hokage?" her white-haired teammate complained from his spot in the window. "Naruto was my apprentice before he was yours, by the way. And what's with taking the Uchiha?"

"I had a very... enlightening conversation with him after he regained consciousness," was Tsunade's short reply. "And yes, I'm going to need you to cover for us while we try and get away. Without someone I trust to stay behind and hold the reigns, I don't think we can stay in Hi no Kuni for very long after leaving. But that's not what I called you for."

"And what makes you think I wasn't coming to see you anyway?" Jiraiya teasingly remarked.

"You've heard then?" she confirmed. He only nodded.

"Go and collect Naruto's Inheritance. _All of it_. Even that mansion that I _know_ you know how to seal away. I've got Shizune collecting the funds that go with it, but that's meaningless if the rest is confiscated by the Council. Then, maybe go spend some time with our apprentice and try and explain things to him. I'll be around to see him this evening."

Jiraiya nodded. "What are you going to be doing in the meantime?"

Tsunade smirked and replied, "Collecting some scrolls and maybe a few other things from Sensei's vault. I'd take Konohamaru and his family with us, but that would draw too much attention. Besides, there are some other artifacts in there that would be more useful in the hands of someone that could use them."

Jiraiya nodded, then handed her a sealed envelope, saying, "He made me swear to never open it until this day came. I think he knew a lot of this was going to happen. At least the part about you coming back and then leaving again. Good luck, hime!" Then he jumped away, racing to complete his assigned task before anyone knew he was even on it, and leaving Tsunade with a letter from a dead man.

She stared at the envelope for a solid minute before sighing and breaking the seal on it to open it and read it. There were exactly five words printed in her sensei's precise handwriting.

_Give Them Hell, Tsunade! _

_- Sarutobi_

Tsunade smirked and shook her head, wishing the old man was still alive so she could smack him one. A simple Katon jutsu destroyed the letter and she swept the ash away before getting back to her feet and what she was supposed to be doing.

Tsunade immediately set upon her tasks, the primary of which was simply to gain access to the Hokage's Vault, within was the Forbidden Scroll, and several other artifacts that would make any shinobi in the world drool like Naruto over ramen. Once he was inside the vault, she quickly gathered everything inside in order to seal it all into an ordinary sealing scroll. Some of the items, besides the Forbidden Scroll, included the Monkey Summoning Contract, the diaries of all the Hokages, the Black Book (aka the list of all the dirty little secrets of the village), the damaged copy or Second Raijin, the True Raijin, the last remaining set of the Fourth's tri-pronged kunai used for the Hiraishin, the Key to the Lost Room, and the Hokage's Hat. Can't forget the Hokage's Hat, she chuckled.

After that, she went around the Hokage's Office and other key places in Konoha and took down a few books, scrolls, other little bits here and there that looked like they might be useful, then sealed it all into a single packing scroll. All of this, unfortunately, took several days to do, both in the collecting of artifacts, but especially with what Jiraiya and Shizune were collecting. Every evening, when she wasn't working on putting her affairs in order, she spent the evening with Naruto at the Hospital, which he could leave at any time now, but also in approaching both Hinata and Sasuke individually and getting their support.

Hinata was the easiest to convince in the long run, though theirs was the longest conversation of the two. Sasuke was straight, to the point, and neither of them wanted to mince words. But the simple fact of the matter was that the boy was a target and even he knew it was better to be a moving target than just sitting and waiting for Orochimaru to come get him himself. Sasuke tried to sound like his typical arrogant, emo-self, but the simple fact of the matter was that he was scared.

He was a ninja yes, but he was still a thirteen year old boy who had lost his entire family and when he'd tried to be 'independent' and go his own way, the boy he thought of as 'dobe' and who was his very best friend, quite probably his only friend in the whole world, had beat him black and blue to bring him back home. So he was scared and confused and Tsunade knew it. She didn't put up with any of his bull crap and gave him a simple ultimatum. Come with her and her Team in leaving Konoha and gain support and possibly more friends, along with his current and only friend, or stay in Konoha where he would become a tool of the Council until Orochimaru came for him to become a tool of Sound, probably killing quite a few people on his way in and out.

Sasuke politely and humbly asked if he could come along.

In the final week leading up to Naruto's either exile or execution, the adults scrambled to keep their preparations secret, which surprisingly wasn't very hard to do. The only one of them really being watched was Tsunade and the only thing she'd done was go into the Hokage's Vault and then leave. No one else, not even the Council had access to say whether she'd taken anything out with her.

Hinata gathered her own belongings and made them ready to leave at a moment's notice. Jiraiya retrieved Sasuke's and Naruto's things from their respective apartments. Shizune spread the gossip over what was happening to Naruto. Sadly, that gossip seemed to make the majority of the villagers happy and excited, with very few exceptions. In fact, the only ones to find the news depressing at all were those at Ichiraku Ramen. Everyone else made it seem like they were talking about Christmas or some other approaching holiday!

The last three days were filled with meetings between Tsunade, Jiraiya, the Elders and the Council. The Sannin argued for Naruto to stay, almost, _almost_ threatening violence, but never actually crossing the line. The Elders and Danzo, on the other hand, argued to kill him immediately and to make several other concessions to the Last Uchiha in attempts of enticing him to remain in Konoha.

When Sasuke heard of these... concessions, he sneered in disdain and asked again, almost begging really, to come with Tsunade and that they leave sooner rather than later.

The night before they left, Tsunade tried one last time to get the Council to reconsider, going so far as to give them the ultimatum that she'd been wanting to say to them this entire time. Shizune and Jiraiya tried to stop her, but they weren't fast enough this time.

"Either Naruto stays and you revoke this silly idea of punishing him for completing a mission I gave to him personally, or I go! By that I mean that I will leave Konoha and never return and make you rue the day that you crossed me on this issue!" she argued.

Her ultimatum provided depressingly little response.

"I'm sure that's not what you really want to do, Tsunade-hime," Danzo patronizingly said to her. "Why don't you take some time to relax, forget about the stress of late, hm?"

Tsunade glared around at each of the Council before finally settling on Danzo's face. "Fine," she snarled, barely restraining her killing intent. "This Council is in recess until further notice. If I hear that you're convening in secret or without my knowledge, I will hold every single one of you for high treason. And don't think I won't do that, you've pushed me too far on this already! I need some time away from the politics. Until then, no more politics for as long as can be allowed."

"Very well then," Danzo decided, "We will reconvene in one month. That is the longest time that the government can allow without meeting. Have a nice vacation, Tsunade-hime. We'll see you again in one month."

"No, actually, you're wrong there, Danzo," Jiraiya corrected, having pulled out a book from under one of the Council's seats. "According to the by-laws upon which Konoha was founded, and it would seem that there have been no amendments, the longest time allowed before the Council can convene again without the Hokage's express permission after she's declared that there be no more meetings, is _three_ months. This Council will remain in recess until either Tsunade calls for a meeting, or until three months from this date exactly. To meet anytime before then would be..."

"Reasonable evidence for suspicion of conspiracy to commit treason," Tsunade snarled at them. "And believe me, right now, I would _love_ to execute _that_ law to the maximum punishment for all of you. Don't give me reason to. Good night!" With that she stormed out, leaving a very nervous Council and a fuming trio of Elders.

_Present_

"Wow," Naruto said, very impressed. "So, I guess that bought us some time?"

"Not much, three months at best," Tsunade shrugged, "But hopefully that will be enough."

"So, what did Kakashi-sensei have to say about all this? He didn't exactly come see me after... well, after what happened with Sakura," Naruto asked.

"Kakashi doesn't know I'm leaving," Sasuke stated. "For whatever reason, I think the Council got to him with their ideas of concessions pretty quick. He gave me the Dog Summoning Contract along with three dozen scrolls, all detailing the thousand jutsu he's copied with the Sharingan. He made it sound like what happened with Orochimaru's goons was 'teenage rebellion' he called it. Hn! And you weren't the only one that had an... incident with Sakura."

"Actually, she went to see Sasuke-kun first," Hinata told them all, "and then after that is when she went to visit Naruto-kun. I was there for that at least."

"What did you say to her that got her so mad?" Naruto inquired.

Sasuke flushed red with anger, clenching his fist. He grabbed the side of his neck where the Cursed Seal began to throb. Finally, once the Seal had calmed down, he answered, "I'd rather not talk about it. Let's just say that as angry as she was with you, for what she said in innocence, I was a hundred times angrier with her."

"I can imagine," Shizune scoffed. "Silly girl. Never really knew what she wanted out of life."

"I can't stand to be here another minute," Sasuke angrily stated. "This village is so full of hypocrites, no one knows who is in the right of it anymore! Even if Tsunade-sama hadn't approached me with this plan, I would have left the village sooner or later. It's not worth it anymore."

"No," Naruto shook his head, looking back at the distant mountain with five faces carved into it, the fifth more half a face still. "It's still worth it. I'm going to come back some day. I'm going to come back and while I may never be Hokage, I will free this village from it's hypocrisy and make it honest again. Even if I have to form my own village and conquer the Leaf as the Kage of another village! I won't let it end like this."

"Strong words," Sasuke challenged his rival, "Can you back them up?"

Naruto gave him a look, then flipped up the hood and said, "Watch me."

END _Ichi_


	26. GODS Part 3

**DREAM BATTLE**

The moment he was at it, the door opened for Xander. Unlike with Buffy however, Xander did not rush in as he saw the danger that was assaulting Willow in her dreams. He came to an immediate stop, something only capable in dream worlds, and cartoons.

Rather than the Bronze, Willow's dream was a…white place. At the center of it was what had made Xander stop. Not even a full second after he did, Ron, and then Kes, had caught up with Xander.

"Xander, what's wrong? Why aren't you entering to help your friend?" Kes asked. In reply, Xander just pointed.

In the exact center of the whiteness, were _three_ Willows. One, obviously the dreamer, was in the center, sitting, no, _tied_ to a chair, wearing a plaid green dress with a trim and proper white blouse, her hair straight and made her look even more geekish than the outfit did. The second, which seemed to be dominating what was happening here, had neck-length red hair, a style that Xander had never really imagined Willow wanting. This second Willow was also dressed to the nines in a business suit, for women. Xander also noted that she had far paler skin than the seated Willow.

The third made all three gods stare, and an uneasy feeling settle in all their stomachs. This Willow, with the same short hair, seemed to have taken up dream-Cordy's fashion sense, wearing tight black leather all over, including a corset and leather bellbottoms. She also looked to be the most dangerous of the three, as she was displaying a rigid wrinkled brow, demonic yellow eyes, and far sharper teeth than the other two Willows had.

"What the hell is she?" Kes asked about the third.

"_Vampire_," Xander and Ron both hissed in anger and fear.

"My experience is that the moment I step in, the dream starts playing." Xander explained his stop. "Is there anyway to keep the dream frozen and still interact with it?"

Ron immediately shook his head 'no'. "Believe me, I've tried," he further conveyed. Xander just grimly nodded his head. "Then move fast and hit hard. Whatever the one in the suit is, I don't trust that she's just human. And Will never mentioned anything about having dreams about vampires before."

"Did something happen today that might have changed that?" Ron asked, both he and Kes getting ready to 'run' into the dream. Xander just shook his head. "Not that I can think of. Just your typical Saturday."

Ron sighed and nodded. "Ready?"

Kes nodded, "Ready."

"One, two," Xander counted, just before he said the next number, both gods notice him tense, and tensed themselves, "THREE!"

Just like that, three identical blurs sped into the dream…and then hit a barrier ten feet away from the Willows inside it. From the way it flashed after they hit it, it looked like prison bars, or those cages you see on cartoons a lot.

"What the—?!" Xander shouted as he recovered from being knocked back. All three were still on their feet, which was somewhat surprising to him, but not as much as what had happened.

"XANDER!" the bound Willow cried in relief and love. "Help me!"

"I already told you doll," the business clad Willow said in a dark voice that sent shivers up and down everyone's spine, except maybe the vampire's, "You can dream up all the 'saviors' you want, but they'll just appear outside the cage and none of them can get in."

Then the two short-haired Willows glared at the interlopers, "Although, I must compliment you on your taste. The girl is rather yummy looking if I do say to myself."

"Xander looks like he did when he was alive," the leather-clad Willow, VampWillow, cooed, making the very words sound like a sexual caress. "Can I keep him? I wanna see if this one will let me ride him like a pony."

"Not now sweet face," the business Willow, BadWill, said offhandedly. "Now where were we?" she asked as she leaned down and licked the side of bound-Willow's face. "Oh yeah, I remember now."

"Wills, you have _got_ to work out these issues," Xander commented as he tried to run the barrier again. The same thing happened.

BadWill looked up, annoyed, and said back to the real Willow, "Persistent aren't you? What? You don't like getting licked? We'll have to change that. Trust me, there's nothing like a good tongue between your legs…"

"Well, I know of something," VampWillow said dreamily, staring at Xander.

BadWill smiled demurely at the vampire, "Well I wouldn't know about that, my lover and sire being Buffy and all."

_*That*_ made everyone stop and stare at her. Suddenly, Ron snapped his fingers, inspiration dawning on him. "Of course!" he shouted. "They aren't figments of Willow's dream, they're _real_! They're dream walkers. Like us."

The last sentence got both dark Willow's to look up and stare at the trio, uncomprehending.

"But…if they aren't a part of Willow's dream…how could they construct the cage, or know what it does even?" Xander asked in a rush.

"They constructed it using their own power. It must be demonic energy, considering one of them is a vampire," Ron stated logically.

"How do you figure that?" Kes asked.

"LATER!" Xander shouted. "That wall is coming down now!" With that he raced forward again, but rather than just running into the cage, he punched it, his fist starting a chain reaction of flashing energy, that lit up the entire cage, some sparks even flying between the bars.

BadWill looked at what she thought a construct of Xander made by the captive consciousness before her. "That's impossible!" she exclaimed. "She doesn't have that much power. Hell, barely enough to even have potential. There's no way she could have that much energy to do that much damage!"

"Stop calling me a she!" Xander snarled, a dark and dangerous look passing over his face.

Even VampWillow took a step back at that look. "Xander's angry," she whimpered. She never liked her sweety when he got that angry. It wasn't safe for human or vamp to be around him when he did.

"Big whoop!" BadWill shouted sarcastically, then turned back to the bound-Willow. "Take him away or I start getting painful rather than persuasive. Believe me, I have the practice. And get rid of the Buffy and Giles constructs too."

"But…I-I-I didn't make anything happen! I-I s-swear!" the geeky Willow stuttered.

BadWill frowned and then turned around, and looked at Xander. The dark look he'd had before could have been passed off as a flash of annoyance compared to the one he bore now. To her credit, she actually looked him back in the eye without flinching.

"Big mistake. You do not threaten my friends," Xander growled as he slammed his fists into the cage over and over, each hit causing the same reaction, and then getting worse as the effects of each hit started to overlap each other.

Pretty soon, the speed Xander had used in running was now directed into his arms as they became like twin jackhammers against the cage. Even the arrogant BadWill began to feel the fear the others already felt at Xander's actions.

Not meant to undergo such force, it was not very long before the cage finally became solidified energy, and Xander threw one last punch at it, and it shattered like so much glass. Not skipping a beat, Xander flashed forward, nothing but a blur to everyone's eyes, and hit first BadWill with a kick to the chest and then VampWillow with a punch to the stomach. Each hit sent both evil Willows flying backwards from the bound Willow.

"Xan-Xander?" Willow stuttered.

"Help her," Xander ordered, and then he went after the two people that had threatened his friend's dreams.

"I thought you said nothing could break that thing," VampWillow growled to her partner.

"That is _IMPOSSIBLE_!!" BadWill screeched, briefly throwing a tantrum. "I don't know what the hell you are Xander-clone, but you are about to cease existing in the next few seconds!" And with that, BadWill changed her every appearance. Instead of a business skirt and jacket, she had on black leather pants tighter than the ones VampWillow was wearing, and a black vinyl vest with steel clasps that actually looked smaller than the corset as well. Other than boots and a vamp face, she wasn't wearing anything else.

"You-you're a vampire too?" Xander hesitated in continuing his attack when he noticed this fact.

"What? Surprised?" BadWill drawled. "It's no big deal. Buffy got careless one night, and the first thing she does is come and turn me. We've been together ever since. About fifty years from my perspective. I picked up this little beauty," she gestured at VampWillow, "in another dreamscape, one actually from an erased timeline I had thought, but it turned out there really was a universe where Buffy never came to Sunnydale."

"Well, that only confirms my theory," Ron announced as he and Kes finished freeing the real Willow.

"What theory?" Xander growled, not looking away from the two vampires.

"They are and aren't Willow. They're alternate versions of what she could have become in either parallel or alternate universes. Somehow, I think the one that's talking so much figured out how to navigate the Inbetween and crossed dimensions in it. Possibly to try and ensure more versions of _her_ occur. Demons, unlike normals, the more of their kind there is, the more powerful they become, whereas humans have to share an energy…"

"Lecture later Ron, we got two vamps to dust!" Xander shouted just before he rushed the more powerful of the two vampires, BadWill.

Too surprised at the turn of events, the vampire didn't move as Xander hit her full force in the chest again, and much to hers and everyone else's surprise, she flew back a great distance, and when she landed, it took her half a minute to even get to her knees. By then, Xander was busy with the other vampire Willow, who was actually ready for him, unlike her counterpart.

Xander ran straight at her, but rather than stand still and let him hit her, the vampire moved with the same speed she had in reality, dodging Xander's hit. Unfortunate for her, Xander, in the dream, was still moving faster.

He adjusted his motion so that his elbow slammed into the side of her head, where she had dodged to and then moving at the same speed, spun around and landed a flawless roundhouse kick against the other side of the vampire's head. She flew back more than twice as far as the first one had. She, however, was up a whole lot quicker.

"I don't know how you did that, but it really doesn't matter," a dark and sinister voice said directly behind the young god. "My dream, my rules, and my world." Before he could turn fully around, BadWill started a lethal combination of punches, kicks, and knees to the ribs on Xander's unguarded form. Finally, she just shot a powerful roundhouse to his head, knocking him back some ten feet. Not nearly as far as she had gone though.

"Xander!" the real Willow cried for her friend. And then, to hers and the other Willows amazement, Xander just picked himself up off the ground, dusted off his clothing, and turned and faced BadWill, absolutely no sign of injury on him.

Xander then looked over at the real Willow and smiled in a way that let her know that he was the real Xander. "Willow, this is all a dream. _Your_ dream. Not hers, not theirs. Not mine even. _Yours_. If you could put Cordy in a maid outfit complete with corset and g-string, and Buffy in a drop dead gorgeous nightgown, and get _me_ to proclaim "my love" for you, then I know you can control your dreams when you really want to. Fight them. Fight them with me Willow. Here, both of us can be the Slayer."

"Shut up!" BadWill cursed and started attacking Xander again. This time, he actually put up a fight, blocking, almost anticipating her every move, and landing some attacks of his own. Unfortunately, that's when VampWillow decided to join in on the fun. Against one vampire Willow, Xander could barely hold his own, against two, he was quickly overwhelmed, but his desire and conviction to protect his friend kept him going.

"I…I…I don't know what's going on!" Willow whined to Kes and Ron. "Can you help him?"

"We can, but there is little more that we can do," Ron said cryptically. "We can only fight them, maybe even drive them off, but there's nothing to stop them from coming back later. Only you can actually win this fight Willow. Remember what Xander just told you, this is a dream."

"Yeah, and how did he know about Cor…uh, I mean, how can he, or any of you really be in _my_ dream? This is my dream, right?"

"It is," Kes answered assuredly, "But we can't explain that right now. But I will tell you this. If those two vampires kill Xander, even in your dream rather than his, the real Xander will die. Only you, by taking back control of your dream, can save him."

Willow didn't hear the rest after the words 'will die'. "Xander…" she whimpered a final time. Then a steeled resolve entered her face and the same darkness that had been on Xander's face earlier entered her eyes.

The geek dress seemed to literally dissolve off her and was replaced by a dark denim ensemble, a light green tank top underneath the denim jacket. The wind seemed to pick up suddenly, casting Willow's long read hair about around her face. Then the really weird stuff started to happen.

"I won't let you kill Xander," Willow gritted out between clenched teeth at the fighting vampires.

Willow knew of only two ways to kill vampires. She summoned them both into her dream. The white place suddenly seemed a whole lot brighter, and warmer. What had happened became known when both vampires' skin began to smoke.

"The sun!" VampWillow screeched, hissing in pain.

"It's not real!" BadWill scolded her, her punch at Xander's head missing. "It's _her_!" she pointed at the suddenly changed Willow. "And it's not enough to get us to leave."

"No, but maybe this will be," Willow said, and though far away, her voice was heard quite clearly by all. She raised her hands and gestured at the walls, if there were any, of the white place.

Literally, and suddenly, out of nowhere, *_Buffys*_ started appearing, dressing in the same outfit Willow herself was wearing, except a black tank top underneath the denim outfit. Each bore an expression of outrage and anger, and they were all carrying wooden stakes, and the moment they were fully there, every one ran straight for and started attacking the two vampires.

"OK, color me impressed," BadWill said sarcastically as she almost casually flipped three Buffys trying to tackle her into a half dozen more. "You don't have the knowledge or the skill to put the real threat of a Slayer behind these pitiful constructs."

"Speak for yourself!" VampWillow cried out as the sheer numbers of the dream-Slayers overwhelmed her.

"Way to go Will!" Xander crowed and started to help the Buffys and attacking, with his full dream strength, the two vampires, who were still smoking, but unfortunately not flaming yet.

"She can't destroy them Xander!" Kes shouted, suddenly appearing by his side as she said it, and helping the Buffys attack VampWillow while Xander focused on BadWill. "She can only hold them off. Only once they're gone can we help her construct a shield that will keep others like them out of her dreams."

"So how do we do that?" Xander shouted back, landing a good kick in BadWill's side, but it didn't have too much effect.

"Well, having the real Slayer here, would definitely help," Kes replied sarcastically.

But for some reason, Xander always managed to turn sarcastic comments into plans of great action. Or maybe great plans of action, one of those.

Taking a total chance at looking like a fool, as though he weren't already for wearing pajamas while fighting two dream vampires that were alternate versions of his best and longest friend, Xander took a step back and let the Buffys take care of BadWill for the moment, before focusing his mind and taking a deep breath. Then he shouted with his whole heart, mind, and lungs.

"***BUFFFFFFFFFFYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY*!!!!!!**"

Summers' Residence Couch

Buffy had finally fallen asleep after maybe ten minutes of staring at the dark ceiling, wondering about the comments that Xander had let slip throughout the day and just before bed. She _vividly_ remembered her dream. It was one that she had been having ever since she had gotten to Sunnydale. Each time, the dream would reveal just a little bit more…and then Xander showed up, and they had an actual conversation in her dream.

And then…

And then she had kissed him. Willingly. Passionately. At least as far as her kisses go anyway. But…Willow was in love with Xander. Deeply. She couldn't be like the vixen Madonna and all traipse into Willow's life and without even trying take the boy that she wanted to be with more than anything. It would be too noir of her, not to mention that while Xander was a great friend, he wasn't exactly her type.

So why did she have to go and kiss him? All right, it was in a dream, but…why did she have to go and kiss him?

These thoughts, and many similar ones, were all on her mind when she finally fell asleep. Five minutes later, her eyes started shifting rapidly beneath their lids and her vitals reached the level known as REM sleep.

Suddenly, about ten seconds after Willow whimpered something that sounded like a cry of pain, "Xander," Buffy's entire body twitched and her face grimaced. Shortly after, there was a sigh from Willow and another twitch from Buffy, only her left arm this time. After that, their forms were undisturbed for the rest of the night.

Inbetween Buffy's dream world

Buffy had wound up back in the same park that she had dragged Xander to after they had escaped the cavern. Standing before her were Xander and her kissing, just as they had been the night before in her dream.

Before Buffy could begin to ask herself what she was thinking all over again, she heard a distant cry that she would recognize no matter what, and a sense of urgency that accompanied it.

"Xander…" she whispered as she recognized him calling her. Then she frowned, grimaced really, and muttered to herself, "Willow? What…?"

Without another thought, Buffy knew what she had to do, although neither knowing or questioning _how_ she knew or precisely _what_ she knew. She stepped up to the place where she had seen Xander both appear and disappear from. If she could drag him back in, maybe she could even step out entirely…

Taking a deep breath, Buffy reached out with her left arm at the space, closed her eyes, and prayed that she wouldn't be too late to save her friends. Her only friends.

Willow's dream world

As good as things had gotten for Willow's defenders, they were not getting any better. Ron had remained by the real Willow's side, defending her when either of the vampires managed to slip past Kes or Xander, and the dreaming redhead was trying to bring forth as many Buffy's as she could, infusing them with more and more fighting skill that she observed just from watching the vampires defeat them. They also got continuously stronger and faster, but the vampires and the gods were always faster.

Kes, Xander was surprised, was actually better than Buffy as far as fighting skill went, but she looked like she was holding back. At least, every time that he hit BadWill she still went flying back the same distance and took the same amount of time to get back up. VampWillow was not flying back.

"Something wrong Kes?" Xander asked casually, after he had a thirty second break from sending BadWill flying again.

"What makes you say that?" Kes asked as she ducked under a sloppy punch from the vampire and followed through with a kick to the stomach and a tiger strike to the demon's face.

"Oh, maybe cause I'm the new guy to this and I'm tossing Miss control freak around like an uppity rag doll, and you aren't even using that sword on your back!" Xander shouted as BadWill came back for more and he raced forward to give it to her.

"I can't exactly get any better Xander!" Kes shot back at him.

"You could stop holding back!" Xander emphasized his sentence by getting a punch through BadWill's defenses and once again knocking her back over twenty feet where immediately the Buffys tackled her and started to beat on her.

"And run out of energy like you are? In case you hadn't noticed, she's playing with you. She knows you can't or don't know how to banish her, so she's letting you waste your energy on her. At this rate, Willow will be defenseless in twenty minutes!" Kes scolded him.

Xander grimaced and then he frowned as he saw something in the distance, at the edge of the dream. _'Is that what I think it is?'_ he asked himself as he stared.

Willow suddenly faltered, and Ron immediately caught her and asked what was wrong. "Ooooo…I feel funky weird…" Willow drawled, as though she were drunk.

A loud growling could suddenly be heard and all heads, even VampWillow's, turned to look at BadWill. She was still covered by the dream-Slayers, until all of a sudden, all of the Buffys were cast off of her in an explosion of power, BadWill now floating a meter off the ground, her eyes now solid black with red pupils, and demonic energy crackling around her clawed fists.

"You think you can beat me! You think that some petty vampire powers are all that I have! I discovered the dreamscape, I found the passage to others dreams and other realities through them! You have no idea the depth to my power!" her voice echoed with said power as she spoke.

"Actually," Xander mock-whispered to Kes, "I was trying to distract her."

Kes looked at him, bewildered. "From what?!" she almost shrieked.

"From that," he then pointed behind Kes and VampWillow, and everyone in the dream looked to what he was pointing at.

"What is that?" Willow asked Ron, still kinda out of it. From the moment that BadWill had tossed them off of her, all the dream-Slayers had vanished, even the ones attacking VampWillow.

Out of the whiteness, a hole had appeared, a crack in the perfect white of the dream. It was actually a vortex of some kind, flashing occasionally with an unknown energy, and a bright gold in color with a faint blue at the center/end of it.

It was Ron who had figured it out first, remembering Xander calling out for his other friend, the Slayer, in the middle of the fight. Kes was right on the edge of understanding as well when she asked Ron, "Isn't that where the dream door used to be?" The older god just smiled and nodded.

Before another word could be uttered, _some_…_**thing**_ came out of the vortex, and going about twice as fast as Xander and the others had been going. The gold hued blur didn't even pause when it entered the white place, it just raced straight for the floating BadWill.

"I don't know, or care what the hell you are," she growled, the energy around her becoming greater and more volatile, "but I am getting bored with these interruptions. So LEAVE!"

The floating redhead vampire shot a blast of the demonic energy from her fingertips at the oncoming blur emphasized the final word. A second before the blast would have hit it dead on, the blur just sidestepped and went around the blast without slowing down for an instant.

"What!" BadWill exclaimed just as the gold blur hit _her_ full force head on and finally stopped, the demon Willow thrown back, gold and lightning blue energy lancing up and down her body, obviously causing her more pain than all of Xander's hits.

Now that it was not longer moving, everyone could easily see what it was that had come out of the vortex. Buffy Summers, or rather the soul of, imbued with all of the supernatural power of the Slayer stood before her friends and the gods, and one seriously outnumbered and outmatched vampire. Rather than look real as the dream Buffys had, Buffy seemed to be made out of gold energy, and her eyes were the same shade of blue as the center of the vortex. Xander also casually noted that she too was wearing her pajamas, despite them being a glowing gold.

"Hey guys, did I miss the party?" Buffy asked with a smile.

Xander smiled back at the Slayer, the _real_ Slayer. "Nope, right on time Buff, as usual. Nice trick with the Bad Will there. You want the VampWillow or do you want us to take care of her?"

Buffy turned and looked at said VampWillow, and grinned. "Oh, I never get to have any fun in my dreams anymore, I think I'll take her. Although, technically speaking this is Willow's dream…"

"Don't go there Buff," Xander warned, "It's a migraine just waiting to happen."

Buffy nodded gratefully at her Xander-shaped friend. Then frowned. "We've still got to talk about that kiss mister. As soon as this is over, hightail it over to my dreams, or get ready for a major butt-whooping in the morning."

"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" Xander saluted with a sloppy grin on his face. That grin instantly fell when he heard a shrill voice behind him squeak out, "Kiss?!"

"Uh, Will, it's not what you're probably thinking…" Xander spun around to face his friend.

He was rewarded with exactly what Willow was thinking as an image of him and Buffy in a passionate, total tongue, groping kiss appeared out of the whiteness. "OK, it is _DEFINTELY_ not what you are thinking," Xander said firmly. The image quickly disappeared.

"I saved Buffy from a nightmare, and she said something about giving me one happy dream or something and I swear it was only in her dream…uh, world, and there was NO tongue. None, zip, nada, no tongue at all." Xander adamantly confirmed.

"Aw, there had to be a little tongue," VampWillow whined.

"Would you shut up!" Buffy then held up her left arm and a stake appeared there. She didn't even waste time in throwing it, it just shot out of her hand and into the vampire's chest. "But…" was all she could get out before crumbling to dust and the dust being sucked into a vortex that had opened at the vampire's feet, red and black in color, which immediately closed as soon as all the dust was gone.

Unfortunately, as soon as the vampire Willow was gone, another bolt of demonic energy hit Buffy's still upraised arm. She cried out in pain, and for just a moment, her entire body flickered, which made a kind of sense since she seemed to be made out of supernatural energy.

Xander didn't waste time on the psychological, he reacted faster than he ever had, or very likely ever would in the real world. He became a racing blur once again, and despite the three bolts of demonic energy fired at him, he didn't stop until he had BadWill by the throat and torn from the air.

"I told you," he grated in a deathly cold tone, "Don't. Threaten. My. Friends." At each word, his grip just got tighter and tighter, his strength dramatically increased not only by his awakening, but the dream world itself empowering his dream form according to his will. (Not a lowercase spelling for Willow, I mean mind over matter 'will', not "Heya Will!")

BadWill couldn't believe what was happening to her. No 'Xander' could ever be this powerful, not even in the dreamscape, which is what she called it. And yet here he was, dream walking, using mental powers in the dream that normally takes months to learn, and his hand was actually tearing into her neck. BadWill knew that if she died in this dreamscape universe that she would never be able to return and certainly not to this alternate of her. And she wanted to return, increase the number of 'hers' there were in the omniverse and then combine them all into one uber-vamp form for her to control.

Too bad that wasn't gonna happen, as with one last burst of raging strength, Xander's fist around BadWill's neck closed tight, nothing but dust between the fingers as the vampire's head rolled away. Shortly after, as with the other, a red and black vortex opened and absorbed every particle of the vampire's dust. Xander made a show of dusting off his hands and clothes before turning back to the others.

"Xan-xan-Xander…?" Willow stuttered as he walked back to the group that had gathered once the last of the evil Willows were gone.

"Yeah Will?" he asked, suddenly being right in front of her.

She almost startled, but remembered it was a dream and therefore distance had no real meaning here. Especially since it _was_ her dream. "Uh…um, thanks. F-for-for coming to the rescue. I…I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't gotten here in t-time…"

Xander saw that his friend was about to break down and start crying, the stress of what she had just gone through finally ramming into her full force now that it was over. He embraced her without thought and softly rocked her back and forth, making comforting sounds. "Shhh, it's ok Will, it's over now. Don't even think about what those two dust-bitches were doing here. They're gone now, so you don't ever have to worry about them coming back again." Xander cast a look at Ron, who just smiled and nodded back, understanding what Xander was silently asking. No, the two vampires would not be coming back, and therefore yes, Xander was telling the truth.

Xander smiled back at his two new friends, and when he felt her quiet, Xander stepped back to appreciate his best friends. "Thanks for coming to _our_ rescue Buffy," he said to the energy made Slayer.

Buffy just shrugged and grinned the way she did. "It was no big. Anything for our Wills, right Xan? I'm serious about our talk Mr. Harris. I'll expect you in my dream as soon as you're done here." She cast one last loving friendship look at Willow, and then in a way that made her entire form blur, she dissolved back into the still open vortex, and only upon the moment that it had collected all of 'Buffy' did it shrink back and disappear, leaving only the undisturbed white place of Willow's dream.

Before either of the gods knew it though, the white place turned into the Bronze, and Xander recognized a particular table at the center of the dance floor. He turned back to see Willow, now in the same red dress he had seen her in, in the last dream of hers he'd visited.

"Will, you look beautiful…but please don't turn me into a sap again, it was almost embarrassing the last time I saw the way I acted," Xander almost begged.

Willow smiled at him and stepped forward. Then she slapped him, hard, across the cheek. "That's for invading my private dreams. Next time, even if you just "_stumble_" into them, wait for an invitation, not an open door, to come into my dreams Xander. Oh, and as a parting memory," Willow in the red dress snapped her fingers and instantly, at her heels, complete with leash, was the new "puppy dog" in Willow's dream; Xander in nothing but a black latex Speedo, the collar, and the leash.

At a wolf whistle from Kes, Xander looked up to see the two gods giggling at his expense. Xander, despite his flaming red face, just smirked as his response to Willow's jibe at him, and then it intensified as he said back calmly, "Just for that Will, I won't tell you how I can actually go into your dreams…whenever I want. Now if you don't mind, I have an appointment with a Slayer in Buffy's dreams." Then, with more confidence and suaveness than he'd ever had in his whole life, imagined or otherwise, Xander walked past the S/D couple and to the dream door. Just before he opened it, he turned and looked back at Kes and Ron and asked casually, "You two coming?"

Surprised at Xander's lack of reaction, the two gods just shrugged, still grinning, at each other and followed Xander out of Willow's dream. The moment the three gods were gone, puppy-Xander was instantly replaced with Maid-Cordy, still kneeling and leashed, and pouted to herself. "Damn! What will it take for him to notice me! Other than evil alternate me's invading my dreams and trying to make _me_ evil, that is."

Left with nothing but dreams now, Willow turned and walked back to the table, where the cool and in-love-with-only-her Xander in the tuxedo waited.

The Inbetween

"She'll forget that, right?" Xander asked Ron as soon as the dream door was closed.

"What? The you in the slave outfit? I doubt she'd want to," Ron laughed loudly.

"Not that!" Xander, blushing again, shouted. "The other stuff. The…bad stuff. I don't want her to be traumatized by whatever that was about back there."

"Oh, the vamps?" Ron clarified. "Don't worry, she'll definitely forget. Unless you wake up in the middle of them, you always forget traumatic dreams. And she'll probably get caught up in the making you pay for that last comment dreams to have a chance at remembering the vamps."

Xander chuckled. "Yeah, she probably will. Thanks for the backup guys, I really appreciate it."

"No prob 'Xan'," Ron copied what Buffy had called him. "I'll catch you later. I'd like to get back to my own dreams, thank you very much. I was only here as part of that whole responsibility thing. Oh, and remember that path that appeared when you said Willow's name? Just say my name and you'll get another path that will lead you straight to mine, if you ever need my help. Kes, I'm sure, is the same way. See you later Xan!" And with that, the older god disappeared into the mists, despite the numerous 'objects' Xander could now see, the mist was still there.

"Mind if I hang with you for a bit?" Kes asked Xander. "This is the most excitement I've had in years. I mean it! Vampires, helping you save a friend, the Hellmouth… Last time I had this much action was back during World War 2."

Xander gawked at her. She noticed his look, seemed to be uncomfortable for a moment before asking indignantly, "What?"

"Uh…nothing," Xander had to remind himself about the whole immortal deal.

Remembering what Ron had told him, Xander turned and said aloud to the air, while imagining his friend at the same time, "Buffy." Instantly, an amber gold path, lined with bright blue along the edges, appeared at the young god's feet and lead off into the distance, around a corner of a wall.

"Come on," Xander invited Kes along and they both started to tread the path.

"Nervous?" Kes asked with a lopsided smile on her face.

"Wouldn't you be? I mean the girl that I have been in love with from the moment I first saw her, who does not return my feelings in any way that I can define, I rescue from one of her own dreams, she then kisses me as reward and tonight I drag her into our other best friend's dream to save her from two vampire alternates trying to take over her dream world, and then tells me in a tone that does not broke for argument, let alone hesitation, to meet her in her dreams so we can "talk". No, of course I'm not nervous."

Kes just giggled.

"You aren't helping," Xander bit out in annoyance.

"I know," Kes giggled again.

It wasn't too much longer before the path ended and they were at Buffy's dream door, which was behind a domed laser grid of supernatural energy, which Kes identified for Xander. Taking a deep breath, Xander, as he had the night before, placed his hand, palm first, against the laser grid/door. Immediately upon his touch, the entire grid disappeared in a wave of energy, leaving only the door, which soon opened.

Xander frowned when he saw nothing but complete darkness in the dream. "Buffy?" he tried calling out, and a moment later realized how foolish that was, since she would be frozen in her dream.

Xander looked back to Kes, who was also looking on with a mask of concern on her face. "Go on. I'll wait out here. Besides, I always hated being the third wheel in a lover's quarrel."

"What the—HEY!" Xander shouted when Kes pushed him through the open portal and waved bye-bye. Xander figured out why in the next second, as he started falling down the very deep black pit.

Ten seconds later, he landed. On a rocky outcropping in a disturbingly familiar cavern, complete with pasty-faced demon. "Oh good, he's arrived," the Master said easily to the twelve-year-old boy turned Anointed One vampire.

"Do we get to keep him?" the Anointed One asked greedily.

"Oh no, this is just a warning," the Master admonished. "Maybe after the Slayer's dream comes to pass, minus the boy's interference that is, you can have him, but for now, this is just a warning."

"A warning for who you albino freak reject!" Xander grated as he got to his feet, his whole body aching like a dozen vamps had just given him a beating.

"What a good idea!" the Master suddenly exclaimed, and just like that, a dozen vamps came out of the shadows and started to beat on him. That is if they had actually reached him they would have.

Xander struck out as soon as he saw them coming at him. Moving with the superior speed and strength he had found himself to have in dreams, the vamps were easily no match as Xander knocked them back and away, almost all of them luckily landing on sharpened pieces of wood through the chest. The last two however, Xander tossed one onto a torch and it quickly burned away, and the last, looking right into the red eyes of the Master, tore its head off with his bare hands. Xander then repeated the same show of dusting off his hands and clothes.

"Impressive," the Master said, indeed sounding impressed. Xander wasn't.

"Warning for who you Chaplin-wannabe-reject? Me? I don't think so. This is the second time that I've seen you in Buffy's dreams. I don't want to even _hear_ about you being back, or I'll give _you_ nightmares." Xander said coldly, feeling empowered in the dream world. The dream world of a friend, he reminded himself.

"See how unstable these mortals can get?" the Master whispered conspiratorially to the Anointed One.

"Who said I was mortal?" Xander inserted, drawing attention back to him. Before the Master had turned his head back though, Xander was right in front of the vampire/demon. "I'm more powerful than you can imagine albino boy, and I've got some equally powerful friends who can help me keep my promise about your nightmares if I hear that you're in Buffy's anymore. Now get out of here…because I've already torn the heads off of two vampires tonight, I _really_ don't mind doubling that."

The Master just stood there, trying to intimidate the boy, what he saw as a boy, with his demonic glare and visage. Xander didn't blink, he just stared cold death right back up at the red-eyed demon. Finally, the Master just snarled, snorted and turned around, drawing Colin to him with a wave of his arm. Then they, and the cavern, disappeared completely.

Leaving Xander in the park, sunlight raining down, and Buffy in a sundress smiling at him from the sandbox. "Thanks, though it really wasn't needed," she said as way of greeting.

Xander shrugged. "I'm feeling confident after the whole debacle with Willow."

"I'm sure," Buffy said demurely. "You do remember this is all a dream. As weird as things _can_ get, as much like reality as they can seem some times, it's _still_ just a dream. Fantasy."

"Vampires are supposed to be fantasy Buff," Xander said as he walked over next to some swings, leaning against the metal pole.

"But they're not," Buffy shot back.

"So…maybe some dreams aren't either," his tone gave Buffy all the clues about what he was really after.

"I shouldn't have done that," Buffy stood up quickly and turned her back on him, "I shouldn't have kissed you."

"Why not?" Xander demanded to know.

"Because I don't have the feelings to back up what it could mean Xander!" she shouted at him. "I…I don't…feel that way about you, that you do about me. And Willow…"

"What about Willow?"

"She's in love with you Xander, she has been for a long time, you just refuse to see it," Buffy told him.

"Says who?" Xander almost screeched. In response, Buffy just rolled her eyes.

"I mean who says I refuse to see it?" Xander elaborated. "Willow has been my friend for a long time, and I know how she wants to feel about me, if anything the dreams of hers that I've seen have proven that, but Buffy that's not the whole picture."

"I'm…oh darn what's the term…?" Xander asked the sky, then suddenly several clouds spelled out the term he was trying to think of. "Uh, thanks," he told the sky.

"I'm basically just one big crush for Wills Buff," he turned the conversation back to Buffy, "I'm the focus of all her adolescent emotional roller coaster rides. I'm a nice guy, even you have to admit that Buffster, and I take care of my friends, and that makes me a knight in shining armor compared to _every_ other guy that Willow knows. Just because I'm the only one that she has consciously admitted having feelings for does not mean that I'm the only person on the planet that she _does_ have feelings for."

"Oh, and who else does Willow love like she loves you?" Buffy asked, her face red from either anger or frustration Xander couldn't tell.

"Well, there's you," Xander stated honestly, damning himself for the whole 'nothing but the truth, the whole truth, so help himself' when in the dream worlds.

Buffy took a step back, her face falling. "Wh-wh-what d-d-do you m-mean?" she stuttered.

Before Xander could answer, the entire park changed half into the Bronze, and the half behind Buffy stayed the park, but without as much sunlight and more clouds. The half that Xander stood behind shown the final scenes of Willow's dream that he had seen the night before. Buffy in a beautiful silk white gown sitting down to join the Willow in the Red Dress, who was being necked by a, safe, Xander in a tuxedo, and her feet getting kissed and worshiped by a Cordelia that took a wrong turn in a bondage magazine.

Ten seconds after it became clear that the 'date' between Xander and Willow had turned into a 'date' between Willow and Buffy, the park returned in full, but the clouds were still overcast.

"Whoa boy," Buffy mumbled, sitting down on the edge of the sandbox again.

"I've known that she's been dealing with this issue since we were thirteen. That's why I've done my hardest to ignore her advances, and that's why we never started 'dating' again. Jesse, as far as I knew, didn't have a clue, but he was more my friend than Willow's, so he wouldn't have noticed." Xander confessed, joining her at the sandbox.

"How…how…?" Buffy couldn't get the question out.

"How did I find out?" Xander finished for her. He shrugged. "At first I thought the swimsuit magazines were the whole, 'I wanna look like that when I grow up', but then you get into the single issue of Playboy, in the garbage mind you, followed by an accidental sneak peak at her diary, where within lies a single page of the full spread from said tossed out Playboy, that's sayin' a whole lot more. Willow is confused right now Buff, and she doesn't need me messing up what's going on in her head, because I only love her like a sister. I can't give her what she needs, and I'd probably end up turning her off of guys all together when we broke up. Note I said _when_."

Buffy sighed. "I so don't want to remember that when I wake up," she said, mentioning the image Xander had unwittingly shown her.

Xander shrugged. "Ron says that so long as you don't wake up in the middle of them, you don't remember traumatic dreams."

"Says him," Buffy stuck her tongue out at Xander.

Xander smiled friendly at the Slayer but didn't really rise to the bait. For some reason he felt tired.

"Xander…the kiss was just a heated way of saying thank you," Buffy explained. "There was no…I don't feel the feelings for you Xan, just like you don't for Will. I'm sorry."

"You felt something though," Xander accused, controlling his anger remarkably.

"What does yellow mean again?" Buffy asked, calmly understanding and shooting down his anger.

Xander deflated as quickly as he'd gotten angry. "Friendship," he answered quietly. Buffy nodded.

"See you in the morning Xander," Buffy said as he started to fade away.

"Night Buff," he said just before he, and the dream itself, vanished.

Summers' Home

Xander let out a long, slow sigh as he returned to his own mind and started to dream normally. His mind still new to this and needing to adapt still to all the changes it was still going through. They had all been asleep for less than ten minutes.

Buffy suddenly started awake on the couch. She didn't cry out, but looked wildly around, remembering where she was, and then remembering what she could about the dream she'd just had. She didn't remember anything about what had happened on the other side of the vortex (Willow's dream), or what had happened between stepping into it and suddenly being in the sunlit park again with Xander. She _did_ remember her conversation with him, and his revelation about Willow that she never would have guessed in a million years. Then her mind dredged up that "article" that everybody knew about that said 80% of all women in this day and age _may_ harbor bi-sexual feelings, or at the least has "experimented" before they're thirty. Thankfully her mother was pushing forty.

Buffy took a deep breath and lay back down on the couch. She looked over and noticed that both Xander and Willow were still sound asleep. Funny, considering what had been happening in the dream realm so far tonight. Buffy just lay there, looking up at the ceiling for the rest of the night. She didn't get much sleep.

-

End of Chapter 1


	27. History REALM03

REALM 03: History

The fact that Buffy, Faith, Giles, Tara and Willow were all sitting calmly around the living room was the only thing that kept him from running out the door screaming bloody murder or running upstairs to grab every weapon he could handle. That there were around thirteen heavily armed, armored, and powerful looking /_medieval knights_/ was what gave him cause to such a reaction in the first place.

"Uh... did I miss something?" he squeaked, at a complete loss.

"The last one is here," a really, really big knight with a scar across his eye said, sounding annoyed, "Now can we begin?"

"Fine, fine, whatever," Buffy grumbled. "Have a seat Xan. We figured you'd want to be in on this, so we waited until you got in from work. This is Orion by the way . . ."

"/_Lord_/ Orion," the scarred man grumbled.

Buffy shot him a glare and he quickly schooled his face back into a cold lack of expression, and then she continued, "Sorry, /_Lord_/ Orion. He claims that I'm some kind of royalty from some other world or dimension. And he's about to tell us why he thinks I'm supposed to be this . . . savior person type thing."

"It is a great deal more complicated . . ." Lord Orion began.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Buffy waved her hand back and forth in a gesture of impatience. "Xan, you gonna sit or stand for this?"

Xander, stunned into silence with a look on his face that his friends had all told him made him look stupid, even though they knew he really wasn't and the look just meant that he was momentarily shocked and was just sorting through the shocking information he'd just received, immediately went and took his seat on the far end of the couch next to Willow and Tara. Buffy was standing, Giles was in the far recliner and Faith was sitting on the arm of the couch opposite from where Xander was.

The other armored men stationed themselves at various positions around the house, apparently as guards, while Lord Orion stood amidst the Gang and told his story.

"10,000 years ago, Odin was a wild, untamed, and unnamed world, fueled by the basest of emotions and instincts. 5,000 years of violence later, that began to change. Countries, rulers, kingdoms began to appear amidst the violence and chaos. The chaos was still there, but order began to appear and make it's presence known."

"It took another thousand years of fierce fighting and worse between the 'kingdoms' of Odin, a time known to our people as the Reforging, but eventually one kingdom stood above the others, either through alliance or simply conquering them all. Thus the Realm became known as Odin. Centuries passed, history was made, forgotten, rediscovered, lost and found again, until a human king came to rule. Merely 4,000 years ago the Summer line began and has thus ruled Odin with a fair and just hand. Since then, both Kings and Queens have ruled over the Realm of Odin, and Odin became a respected and noble realm to be respected by all others. Until the time of King Remmus VII. Remmus, like his and your ancestors was a just and kind ruler, making more allies than enemies, but always with a fair amount of both. One such alliance was with a clan of demons known as the Bloodstains. In the days of Remmus VII they truly were a peaceful race and were well liked and respected by the peoples of Odin. Yet as all things over the millennia, that changed."

"King Remmus left, for this Realm, for Earth, where his ancestors, the first King of the Summer line originated from, 1,977 years ago to the day. His reasoning was actually quite simple, and at the time, quite necessary as well. He needed an heir, and one that would actually help promote the Summer line, rather than dilute it, as many from Odin would do. We do not know all of what happened to him after he left, but we have traced his line. To you... Buffy Summers."

Buffy looked at the scarred knight with a mix between confusion and outright disbelief, before replying to his bold declaration, "Yeah. OK. So? What's that got to do with me?"

Lord Orion, not to mention the other knights around the room all glared at her, the scarred speaker frowning slightly before squinting his eyes in slight warning.

"I mean, it's a great story and all, and really, I'm like honored and everything, but... again, what's it got to do with me?" she added quickly to appease the glares.

"I was getting to that," Orion continued.

"The Bloodstains are demons. Truthfully they always have been, but in the generation _after_ Remmus left, they changed from what they'd been before. They truly became demons in every sense of the word. Before, Odin was a Realm to be respected and loved, holding true to justice and honor. Since the Bloodstains came to rule almost 2000 years ago, supposedly as Stewards until the Summer line returns to Odin, we have become a nation of power and cruelty and devolved to the basest of instincts. Slavery has been not only legalized, but enforced for more than a thousand years now. Pirates and criminals find safe havens in _/government_/ buildings and liege lands. Worst of all, though he claims to still be nothing more than a steward, the last member of the Bloodstains, Lord Draconis, has set himself up, in truth if not in name, as a cruel and terrifying dictator. Our people suffer while he puts /_evil demons_/ in positions of power throughout Odin."

"Our only hope is that you, Milady Summers, will come to claim what is rightfully yours. The Throne of the Realm of Odin. You are our only hope, until, that is, you yourself produce another heir."

There was hefty silence for a full minute after Orion's story, and claim to Buffy. Until finally that silence was broken by Xander turning towards his friend and asking point blank, "Is this some kind of joke? Cause I'm not getting the punchline if it is. Or are we talking elaborate trap by the latest Big Bad?"

"B, Royalty? Sounds like trap to me," Faith gave her comment. It was a further sign of how things had changed that rather than rebuffing her, the Scooby Gang simply accepted her input.

"Indeed," Giles commented, "Of the, admittedly few, alternate realms I am aware of, some demon dimensions included, I have never heard mention of this Realm of Odin."

"That could be," Orion interrupted, drawing stares, "because since Lord Draconis Bloodstain has taken place as steward and regent, Odin might very well be confused for one of those demon dimensions you mention."

"That bad, huh?" Buffy queried, not really asking for the answer.

The hefty silence returned once more. The armored soldiers looked at Buffy with a kind of forlorn hopefulness mixed with downtrodden bitter pride. It's a sobering experience to see twelve grown men, obviously battle-trained hardened warriors looking at her like she was their greatest, and last, hope.

Finally, she sighed and spoke to Orion, "Not that I'm saying I'll do it, or even that I believe you for that matter, but," she took a deeper breath and let it out slowly, "What would I have to do? What is it /_exactly_/ that you're asking me to do here?"

"To come back to Odin and rule as Queen," Lord Orion pronounced with finality and a hint of 'isn't it obvious?'.

"You want me to leave," Buffy spoke in that halting way that she sometimes used to point out, equally, that she did not understand something, and that the person she was speaking with was even stupider than her, "with you? Leave my home, my friends, even my family, and... just leave with you. Just because you tell me I have to?"

"No," Lord Orion interrupted, "Because you choose to."

"Huh?" now Buffy was really confused.

"You must choose, willingly, without forceful coercion, to come to Odin and to accept the legacy and destiny of being Queen of the Realm of Odin. If there is so much as a single doubt within your heart of this course of action, we could not take you anywhere, let alone back to Odin," he explained.

"So now you've /_really_/ got to convince me," she said as she sat back down, crossed her arms, and made a tiny little show of doing the same with her legs.

Orion sighed and frowned, making the lines of his scarred face a bit deeper.

"Look," she snapped at his sigh, drawing his attention back to her, as well as all the other soldiers in the room, "I'm not stupid, and you're not going to guilt me into this. Especially not with sob-stories, and a pout here and there. If what you're telling me is true, prove it to me. Otherwise, I have to assume that you're either lying..."

"We are not!" Orion shouted with indignation.

"OR," she continued with a glare that actually caused the Lord to back down a bit, "that you were actually sent by this Dragon-blood-Frankenstein guy to kill me and to make sure that no 'heirs' ever make it back to this Realm you're from. Or, you convince me that you're telling the truth, that you're not here to hurt or kill or otherwise harm me, and I believe you. Then, I make my decision and let you know. Until then, I'm going to weigh the pros and cons, and you're going to tell me everything there is to know about the Realm of Odin, this King Remmus, the Summers line on Earth, and you're going to provide rock-solid proof that you're on the up and up. Otherwise, we ship all of you off to the funny farm."

Lord Orion blinked, clearly stunned and a bit surprised. Several of the other knights began to nod along, understanding the girl's logic and caution in accepting them. Finally the Lord smiled, as much as he ever did smile, which wasn't much, and nodded himself.

"Very wise. Very wise indeed. Very well then, to begin with, you are not our only candidate for Heir. There are no less than 15 others that could fill the role and has the potential for ruling as King, or Queen of the Realm of Odin," he answered.

"So why not go to one of them?" Xander asked.

Orion ignored the question until Buffy squinted hard at the older man and ordered, "Answer the question."

He sighed but answered dutifully, "Because of the Trials of Ascension. One can only rule in the Realm of Odin by the two conditions. The first, of course, is blood, the lineage of the Summers Line. This is also the reason that King Remmus returned to Earth. He could not produce any offspring in our Realm because of his chosen Queen being incompatible with humans to mate, and because his bloodline was becoming polluted with toxins from exposure to the supernatural. Pollutants that had built up within the Summer line over millennia of exposure I might add."

"So, he came to Earth, first to find a human female?" Giles interrupted.

Orion shook his head. "Almost two thousand years ago, the morals were very different from what you know and accept today. He came to Earth to renew the blood of his line. He remained with his chosen Queen until they both expired, or at least that is what we've come to assume. But King Remmus came to Earth for one reason and one reason only."

"Basically to get busy and knock up as many women as he possibly could as quickly as he could," Xander interrupted with a lecherous grin.

The women all scowled at the dark-haired young man, but Orion simply nodded and replied, "Basically, yes."

"Alright, so back to there being other candidates for heir?" Buffy got them back on track.

"There are at least 15 others that have the potential. We have already attempted to convince three others before we approached you. They did not believe us, or refused to accept the position. And then there is the matter of the Trials."

"What trials?" Willow asked, concerned.

"The Trial of the Warrior, the Trial of Wisdom, and the Trial of the Gauntlet. And then the Fourth Trial. One who passes the first three tests is then confronted with the Fourth Trial. They may not even know what it entails until they pass the first two of the Trials."

"So that is what was up with the fighting thing earlier?" Buffy questioned.

Orion simply nodded.

"And the Trial of Wisdom?" Giles asked, now greatly concerned. Buffy wasn't known as the smartest Slayer on the block, after all.

"She has already passed it as well," the scarred knight informed them. "When she presented her case for us to convince her, she demonstrated that she is indeed wise and not easily fooled, or tricked. She has passed the first two Trials in our eyes."

"Which explains why you're suddenly so talkative," Xander pointed out, then he turned around and asked, "So what about this Trial of the Gauntlet? Is it some kind of pain, beat her up to see if she's tough enough, thing?"

"No," Lord Orion nodded at a couple of the knights behind him, and they immediately produced a small wooden-engraved chest they'd been hiding. "She simply has to put on this," the chest was opened to reveal an amazing dark leather glove, or gauntlet as they were known in the olden days, made for the right hand and encrusted with sparkling jewels and gemstones on the knuckles and around the wrist and the sleeve of the glove. It was incredibly beautiful, but sturdy and hardy too.

"This is where the blood comes in," Lord Orion explained, "If she was anyone but a descendant of the Summers Line, the second that she touched this artifact, it would vaporize her. It is also why there are only a total of 15 candidates on Earth instead of hundreds. The descendants of King Remmus number in the near-thousands, but the Summers Line blood runs too thin, amongst all the other humanity of Earth. Only those with strong genes may survive touching the Gauntlet. The Trial comes in putting it on. If it will let you."

"Let me?" the blonde stared at the scarred knight.

"It is a magical artifact. All such things have a... sentience to them that cannot easily be explained. If it will let you put it on, you may face the Fourth Trial, and you will have your proof as well," the Lord from the Realm of Odin challenged Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

She stared at the gauntlet for several long seconds, just looking at it, half afraid it would vaporize her just for that, half in admiration for its appearance. Finally, she turned away from it and faced Lord Orion again, this time demanding in her 'pissed-off-Slayer' tone, "You said that I couldn't know what the Fourth Trial is until I passed the first /_two_/ trials, which you've said I have passed. Now, before I go any further with this, what is the Fourth Trial?"

The knights all tensed and shared nervous looks with each other, especially the two that were still holding the chest before the Slayer. Orion though, he just gave that non-expressive, yet still proud, smile of his and he didn't look anywhere but into Buffy's eyes as he answered, "The Fourth Trial is known as The Choice. You must choose, be willing, and above all else /_want_/ to be the ruler of Odin. The reason why it is the Fourth Trial and not the First Trial is quite simple. The Gauntlet can detect lies and half-truths. Once you wear it, if there is so much as a single instant or fragment of doubt in your heart about wanting to be the Ruler of the Realm of Odin... it will remove itself from your hand. As you are of the bloodline, it will not kill you, and would still protect you, but it would not allow you to command it, nor wear it as evidence of your right to rule at all."

"Smart," Buffy commented with a reluctant admiration. "So understand why I'm not going to put that on right now."

When half the knights seemed about to loudly protest this, Lord Orion raised his armored fist and silenced them all before they could even speak. Still looking Buffy in the eye, he softly demanded, "May I inquire as to your reasoning?"

"Something you need to understand here," she growled right back, pacing the floor and putting her fists on her hips, "Me leaving does not just affect me, and I have current responsibilities in _this_ Realm that I have a lot more experience dealing with than being a Queen in some Hell Dimension! So, I am asking you nicely, and explaining my reasoning rather than just ordering as a 'Highness' or whatever, to get your asses out of my home! Now. We, my family and I here, need to discuss this in private. And for that look your subordinates just gave them, you may consider _this_ an order as your Highness."

Glaring at each in turn as she spoke in a tone of voice that would make every vampire in Sunnydale and across most of the North American continent empty their bowels instantly in stark terror, "You will immediately return to whatever hotel, motel, camp, whatever or wherever place it is they you're staying at when you sleep, eat, or do whatever between tracking members of the Summers Line down. And then you will wait there until tomorrow at this time. Which is quarter to midnight. If I so much as see one of you before that time, no matter what, my first response is going to be to tell you all to go piss on your own graves, and my second response is going to be to track down everyone /_else_/ that you're tracking and warn them about you. And believe me, my warning will leave them with the impression that they should neither believe you, nor say yes to you. Have. I. Made. Myself. Clear?"

Getting stiffly to his feet, Lord Orion scowled dangerously at the Slayer and bowed stiffly. "Crystal, Your Highness," he growled back.

Buffy just accepted his glare, almost cowing back in fear at the power hidden beneath that hard gaze. Then she remembered her mother, the promises the doctors made. She remembered her first Watcher, and everything that had happened to her as a Slayer. Her boyfriends; Angel, how he became Angelus and what Angelus did, Parker and his betrayal, Riley leaving and why he did, and how they all left. Finally, she remembered everything that had happened to each of her friends, the terrible things that had happened to them since she'd known them, both because of the supernatural, and the mundane. Her glare hardened a thousand fold almost as she allowed this scarred knight from another realm that was confused for a demon dimension a glimpse at some of her own pain.

Surprisingly, he almost recoiled at the passion he suddenly saw roaring through the petite blonde woman. He stopped himself from displaying that much, but suddenly he decided that instead of following her orders, as tenuous as they might be, just to allay her threat, he decided to follow her order and having it colored by the threat to demonstrate how much she needed it to be followed.

Finally, he just nodded and bowed once more, this time with a feeling of true respect behind it, and said in a much softer tone, "By your leave, Your Highness?"

Surprised at the change in his tone, Buffy just nodded and waited as they all left through the back door, not saying or doing anything else until they were all gone.

Once they'd left, she turned to give a meaningful look at Willow and Tara, who both nodded back and silently, under their breaths, began chanting in unison. A feeling of charged energy filled the room for half a minute before slowly releasing and Willow nodded at Buffy again, saying, "It's done. We checked after they left, just to be sure, but they didn't leave any listening spells, or listening devices behind. We cast an obscuring spell, just in case. It won't disable any devices, but make it seem we're having small talk or watching TV or we're all reading books or something like that."

"I-i-It w-will work on... outside d-devices t-too," Tara added.

"Thanks guys," Buffy acknowledged their effort, before turning to the whole room and asking in general, "So. How much of that can be believed? And let me assure everyone, that if scar-man is any indication, they're all seriously powerful, or at least very skilled when it comes to fighting. He had me on the ropes twice before I caught on to his rhythm and realized he's a lot stronger than he looks. So if the goal was my death, they could've already had it with a lot less trouble."

"I don't trust them," Xander stated outright.

"Big shocker there," Faith snorted, "Boytoy, you don't trust anybody that ain't G-man or one of 'your girls' so that's kind of obvious."

"As to the validity of their story," Giles took off his spectacles and began to clean them, "Unfortunately, acquiring a credible independent source is next to impossible, and there is also to consider that they themselves have the resources to not only track down the descendants of a man long dead and forgotten by Earth's society, as well as to garner as much information as they can, such as your identity as a Slayer Buffy, among other things would further hinder any independent research into them."

"All right, next question," Buffy stopped him before he got onto a roll. "What do we have to lose if we believe them and go with them? Because I'm promising you guys this right now, if I go with them, I'm taking each and every last one of you with me."

After a brief moment of grateful smiles exchanged, and a quelled look of shock from Faith, everyone turned introspective and gave the matter serious thought.

"Well, number one," Xander spoked up, "if we believe them and go with them, first thing is you have to put on that crazy magic glove of theirs! Who knows _what_ it would do to you?!"

"Actually," Willow interrupted him, "I did a quick scan when they had it out. It's inert right now, and seriously powerful. It _is_ a magic object after all... Anyway, from what I could tell, it doesn't really _do_ anything. Except it will either work or it won't. And if it does... well it's basically a giant magic shield put into a small leather gauntlet."

"OK, what else?" Buffy asked, surprised at the information and grateful for her friends.

"The obvious?" Faith put forth, "We'd all be leaving Sunnydale, Earth, and this whole world. Probably forever. To go live on a demon-infested world that is confused for a demon dimension, where we'll have to fight a bunch of panty-wasted demons in order to get Buffy on the throne where she'd rule over an entire planet as queen. And we'd all be her best friends, comrades in arms, and loyal supporters..."

Everyone kind of trailed off as Faith's descriptions continued, until finally, it was Xander who pointed out, "Y'know, even with the fighting all the demons and the queen stuff... this is sounding more and more attractive. Especially if we get to leave this shit-burg of a world."

"I-I-I'm w-with X-Xander," Tara stuttered suddenly.

"Fuck, if it gets me out of reporting to my parole officer..." Faith commented.

"I'm with Tara," Willow pronounced with finality.

"Bloody hell, this is insane," Giles rolled his neck back, looking up at the ceiling. Then he suddenly straightened and snapped out, "Fuck it, I say we go and do it!"

"Cool," Buffy nodded.


	28. NC18 Insex NC18

In-sex: **Rating: NC-18**

Premise: PWP Willow casts a spell.

Willow was desperate. She didn't know of anything else she could do. Tara had left her, Giles had gone back to England, again, and Dawn and Buffy both hated her. Well, Dawn she was pretty sure hated her. Buffy she wasn't so sure about.

Buffy acted more like she didn't care. About anything. She was angry at Willow; that was for sure. But then, as Tara was packing her things and leaving, Buffy had come to her room and had looked about to try the consoling a friend thing. But after she had tried to grin, her face just fell back into the neutral uncaring mask she'd had ever since she had crawled out of her own grave. Then she shrugged and walked away, going to check on Dawn. If anything, that Willow could see, the only thing Buffy cared about anymore.

Willow was devastated. Tara had been warning her, telling her, and just three days ago threatened her about the consequences of Willow using too much magic. And now she had made good on her threat. She had left. She gave the redhead wiccan…no that was no longer the right word…mage more than enough time to stop her, but Willow knew that there was nothing she could say to change Tara's mind. Nothing that she could make good on. Her broken promise of the day before evidence of that.

Willow was trying to figure out some way to change things, to…make things right. At one point, she had even contemplated moving on and finding another witch-friend, or maybe even another girlfriend. But one look at the rat-Amy in her cage told her that it would do little good. Amy had been a witch-friend, and look how that turned out.

No, what Willow needed, what she wanted, was for Tara to return to her of her own free will. To just say forgive and forget. And that worked _so_ well before… Willow thought, remembering the spells of the days before, making Tara forget their fight, and then accidentally giving everyone total amnesia when trying to make Buffy and Tara forget the things that made them unhappy. _Or not as "Willow" wanted them to be_, she thought bitterly.

Then, one night while Buffy was out patrolling and Dawn was at a friend's house, Willow was looking through some of her books, researching a diamond theft from the Sunnydale museum several days ago, when she came across something.

"The Spell of True Feelings," Willow read aloud. Her interest piqued, she read further. "To find a soulmate, true love, or lost lover. Releases the purest and most basic instincts and feelings upon the source(s) of the spell, and relays all fears and doubts after the effect of the spell has passed. The one(s) involved will then discover their true feelings toward the one the spell directed them to, in their own time. You will need the following: …"

Willow was desperate.

******

"Diana!" Willow chanted. "Make peace with thy sister Aphrodite! Join thy offerings and bring thy blessing to this work!"

It was less than a week after Willow had come across the Spell of True Feelings. It took her that long to gather all the ingredients. That and it took her this long to be alone long enough to actually _do_ the spell. According to the book, the spell's effects only lasted for 27 hours, just over a day. Willow and Tara both attended college and so she had waited until Friday night, planning on an extended make-up session between her and her lover.

The ingredients, other than the usual for love spells, required the hard to gather ingredients. Parts, in this case hair, of Tara, and unfortunately the blonde Wicca had taken a great deal of her things when she'd left. Luck had aided Willow in that hour when the red mage remembered the hairbrush in the shared bathroom that Tara and she had both used. Since she was to be included in the spell as well, Willow smiled at the grace she had been shown. Unknown to Willow, hers and Tara's were not the only hairs plucked off that brush…

Willow was in Tara's college dorm room at that moment. The witch currently out on an errand that Willow had actually set up and hoped that it was enough to keep Tara out long enough for her to complete the spell, and not too long that Willow would have to go out looking for Tara once it did.

"Goddess of love, take this offering. Goddess of the Moon, know thy truth. Grace upon this chosen the sight, the knowledge, the _feeling_ of pure truth." Willow chanted in the middle of the circled pentagram on the floor. She held up the mass of red and blonde hairs to a brightly burning pink and red candle. "Touch thine chosen with the truth. Bring with flame and fire, spirit of sooth, bring calm spirit in time of youth. By this light, by this flame, by these offerings, reveal our hidden feelings."

The patch of hair caught fire and was blackened and ash in an instant, but the second that the ash disappeared into the flame, which coincided with the ending of Willow's casting, the bright yellow flame burst up at least a foot high, now a bright red flame with pink and blue undertones. Half a second later, all the lights in the building, including all the candles Willow had lit, went out.

When the electricity came back on, Willow was standing in the middle of Tara's floor, the evidence of spell casting gone with barely the wave of a hand, staring at the door. The door then opened within a single minute, and then shut a second later when Tara barged in, a wild and almost animal look in her eyes.

"Oh Goddess Willow, I love you so much!" Tara shouted, racing forward to passionately kiss the red haired mage. Willow didn't have time to respond, but she felt entirely the same way. In fact, she loved Tara more at this moment than she had her entire relationship with the blonde witch. Her every feeling and instinct towards Tara was multiplied over a hundred fold and the two lesbians could no more control themselves than Xander could find his way through a clothing store. And pick out something that matched.

Willow was wearing, only, a silk transparent gown that she had bought for Tara to see her in a couple months ago, but never got to wear it that much. It was quickly and easily slipped off and entirely forgotten. Tara's clothes were a bit more difficult to cast off. Ankle-length cotton skirt, silk slip under that, a leather jacket, a cardigan sweater, a long-sleeve white shirt under that, a white tank top under that, and then her black silk underwear. They were both as naked as the day they were born, and just as wet, in under ten seconds flat. They didn't make it to the bed though for at least another three hours.

Buffy was just limping back into her home, the door crashing open at her entrance as she leaned too heavily against it when she turned the knob. Not expecting the reaction, Buffy was forced to fall to the floor when her leaning post swung open. She caught herself on her hands, wincing as the wound in her ribs and back cried out in burning pain.

Unfortunately, all this racket drew her baby sister's attention, who was racing down the stairs just as Buffy managed to get back up to "limping" status. Looking up at the shocked gasp, Buffy gasped herself as she saw Dawn looking at her, fear and worry obvious in her eyes. "Dawn!" Buffy called out, before wincing at the pain of using her lungs for speaking.

"Buffy!" Dawn cried out before skipping down the rest of the stairs, closing the door that had been slammed open, and then was by Buffy's side, all before the Slayer could blink. "Are you all right? What happened?!"

"Nothing happened!" Buffy exclaimed immediately, causing her to wince again at the sharp pain from speaking loudly with her injured lungs. "What makes you think something happened? See, I'm…perfectly fine," Buffy grunted, speaking in softer, almost whispered level of voice.

"No your not, and if you don't think that it is beyond obvious to me that you need some help, like _medical_ help, then you either got hit way too many times over the head, or you're dumber than even _I_ thought!" Dawn huffed as she took her sister by the arm to support her and lead Buffy, unresistingly, toward the sofa in the living room.

"Now I'm gonna ask again," Dawn said in her "authority" voice that she had been working on in the time of Buffy's absence, but she asked the question in a soft, and very concerned tone, "What happened?"

Buffy shrugged, which drew another wince, her pain and injuries were so great that she could barely even keep up the façade of being perfectly fine and invincible in front of her baby sister. A girl that she was supposed to protect, and in fact had already protected with her life. How was Dawn going to look at her now that she saw her "Big Slayer Sister" beat up and in almost more pieces than the Titanic after it hit a little ice cube? Okay, a really BIG ice cube, but still.

"Oh, you know, the usual," Buffy tried to be nonchalant about it, but her weakened voice and her obvious injuries added to her ducked head and blank expression made it look more like she was exhausted rather than non-caring about it. "Patrol, swing by all the local slaying haunts, find some baddies, ruin baddies plan, slay some vamps, and maybe a demon or two, and then head on home to soak in a nice, warm, relaxing, bubbly hot bath and lay down in my nice, soft, warm bed and sleep until the break of dawn…"

"Buffy." Dawn, the person not the event, stood to her feet in front of the Slayer. By the tone, Buffy figured Dawn had caught what she had tried to cover up, but Buffy didn't want her sister to be worried. Finding the strength, the older blonde slowly tilted her chin up to look into her baby sister's hazel green eyes.

"I'm going to get the First Aid kit, and I'm going to patch you up, since Willow's not here, okay? Don't even think of moving from this couch," Dawn warned before moving off to the kitchen.

Considering that she was having trouble getting a steady breath and remain upright at the same time, Buffy was not in a position to even begin to argue.

A few minutes later, Dawn returned with the fully complete and loaded, and in a lot of ways more complete First Aid kit than most Ambulances have, and stood before Buffy once more. It was then that Buffy noticed that her sister was in her nightclothes, aka pajamas. Nothing more than a long, loose tank top that just reached past her waist and a pair of thin nylon panties. The tank top was V-necked, but tight enough around the arms so that Dawn's still developing B-cup breasts were covered, though Buffy could easily see the beads of her baby sister's hardened nipples.

"Did I wake you up?" Buffy croaked with a guilty look on her blemished face.

"Don't try and change the subject," Dawn admonished. "Now do you want to do this here, or do you think you can make it upstairs?"

Buffy seriously considered it for several moments before twisting herself slightly to see the open blinds and the window out onto the street behind her. She turned back to Dawn and got unsteadily to her feet. Dawn quickly took her limping side and began to direct her to the only access to the upper floor.

"Ugh. Stairs. We should get an elevator." Buffy grumbled as Dawn helped her keep her balance up the stairs and supported her when one of her limbs suddenly became too weak.

After a few minutes painful struggle, Buffy was sitting, albeit awkwardly, on her own bed and Dawn was in front of her, kneeling on the floor and pouring out everything in it. "Soooo…what do I need? What do I do first?" Dawn asked, the first sign of her true age seeping into her voice all night.

Buffy swallowed, moistening her throat for talking. "Well…I know for certain that I have five or six cracked ribs," Buffy said as she moved her arms along either side, wincing and drawing a sharp breath when she found one of the injuries, "on both sides. I might have several lacerations, cuts, too, but I'm not sure where."

"How do we find out?" Dawn asked, standing up and bringing many of the things she knew they'd need up onto the bed. Including bandages, medical tape, and a bottle of alcohol.

Buffy closed her eyes and groaned at Dawn's question. "What's wrong?" Dawn exclaimed, terrified that her sister was going to die in front of her eyes from her wounds.

"Nothing…well, nothing other than the obvious," Buffy quickly alleviated in a quiet voice. "Uh…you, you're…Dawn you're going to have to help me…uh, get out of…I mean, take off…I need your help Dawn." Buffy finally stuttered out the sentence, standing and starting to take off her leather jacket.

"Oh!" Dawn nodded, relieved. Then she realized why Buffy had groaned and she blushed slightly as she repeated, a bit quieter, "Oh."

"Uh, yeah. Dawn, if you could…?" Buffy was having trouble slipping the jacket off her arms.

"Oh! Yeah, sure, just a sec!" Dawn put down the medical supplies and quickly helped Buffy remove the heavy clothing. "Well, good news, your jacket seems fine," Dawn said, trying to lighten the mood.

Buffy did grin but she was too focused on not showing the pain even standing was giving her to put any more effort into it. Dawn saw her injured sister moving to unbutton her dark yellow blouse, and caught the brief glimpses of pain that the Slayer was obviously trying to hide. "Here, let me do that," Dawn stepped forward and quickly took over the task.

Buffy was so relieved to put her arms down, she didn't have the energy to argue. Dawn soon had the blouse undone and open, but there were still no obvious signs of alternate wounds, so Dawn decided she had to take off the rest of her elder sister's clothing just to be certain. Being extremely careful, Dawn slipped around and pulled the sweaty blouse off her sister and tossed it to the floor beyond the spilled contents of the FAK.

Her sister was wearing a thin-strapped white tank top beneath the blouse and from the strap color what looked like a satin black bra, but Dawn could now see a number of the wounds inflicting her sister. Knowing she could get to it later, Dawn left the tank top alone and started tackling the belt Buffy wore.

"Dawn…?" Buffy whispered uncertainly when she felt the young woman beginning to work her pants.

Dawn looked up from her task and saw the concern in Buffy's eyes. She smiled, trying to be reassuring, but still absolutely firm. "Buffy, you might be injured somewhere else besides your back and ribs. And you were kind of favoring your left side, so I have to check for injuries, and I can't very well do it with your black corduroys in the way, can I?" That said, Dawn unfastened the pants and began to worm them around, working them slowly, and carefully, off of Buffy's hips.

"And it took Riley six dates to get into my pants…" Buffy muttered under her breath, smiling at her own joke. "What was that?" Dawn asked, too focused to have properly understood what Buffy had said.

"Nothing!" Buffy said just a bit too quickly, but Dawn just shrugged and worked on peeling Buffy's pants down her thighs.

Just after she got them to the knees, Dawn suddenly gasped. "What is it?" Buffy asked, suddenly on alert, thinking that her sister had spotted some demon that she needed protection from.

"Oh, Buffy," younger sister gasped in horror and pure compassion.

That was when she realized that Dawn was reacting to one of her injuries. "Dawn?" she started more sympathetic than alert, "What is it?"

"It…it's a bruise. A real ugly looking one too. It's like over half your thigh and this disgusting puss yellow mixed with blue and a sick mottle gray, and…"

"OK! I get the picture Dawn!" Buffy exclaimed.

"Oh, right, don't wanna hear about it, just want it fixed. Right." Dawn said, getting back to her task.

Within five minutes, Dawn had Buffy in nothing but her underwear, a black "Angels®" Victoria's Secret bra with matching thong panties. No longer needing to stand, Buffy just kind of sunk onto the bed, her stiff and bruised leg hanging off the side, while Dawn attended the minor cuts and a single gash she had along the back of her right arm with the alcohol and bandages.

"So…the usual huh?" Dawn spoke.

"Huh?" Buffy grunted, suddenly drawn out of the funk her thoughts had taken her into.

"You said "the usual" when I asked what happened," Dawn elaborated. "So, what's the "usual"? You never talk about any kinda slaying stuff in front of me, so I don't really have a clue by what you mean by "usual" when it comes to this kinda thing. And don't even start on how young I am to be hearing this kinda thing! I'm still holding the alcohol I'll have you know."

Buffy sighed, briefly intimidated by the threat, but decided she was too tired and drained to fight with Dawn over anything. "Oh, you know, a couple vamps, a lot of fighting, then massive amounts of gore and ugliness that is not suited for PG rating."

"I am almost 16 I'll have you know," Dawn retorted. "So? Only a _couple_ of vamps did this? Not, "a couple of vamps…and maybe a demon or two?" Dawn quoted Buffy's silent reply from earlier.

Buffy sighed deeper and seemed to sink further into the bed. She thought that Dawn had heard her. "It…was no big deal. I handled it."

"Looks more like it handled you," Dawn retorted. "Buffy…if only a _couple_ of vampires can do this to you…that worries me a lot more than whatever it really was that did this to you tonight."

Buffy sighed again and nodded.

"Yes, there were demons there. And there weren't that many vampires there. Only a few. Dozen. Maybe three."

"Three, or three dozen?" Dawn asked for clarification.

Buffy looked guiltily behind her and up at her sister. "About thirty or more. And there were only six demons there. No more. I promise."

"How many of them got away?" Dawn asked after Buffy had turned back around and she was just finishing up cleaning the gash, getting ready to start bandaging it.

Buffy blinked. "None."

Dawn blinked. "I don't suppose Giles was the one that was always ragging on you about taking too many risks in your Slaying?"

"Mom actually."

"Ah."

Silence.

"Buffy?"

"Yeah Dawn?"

"I'm proud that you're my sister."

Buffy felt a flush spread throughout her upper body at the compliment. "Thanks Dawnie…"

"And that you can take on over forty monsters and kill every single one of their fucking asses…"

"_Dawn_!"

"What? What did I…oh my gosh! I-I don't know what happened! I didn't mean to say that Buffy! I…I don't know what happened!" Dawn jumped back, her hand over her mouth, her eyes wide as she sat there mortified at the profanity that had spewed from her mouth.

"It…it's okay Dawn. I…guess it's the thought that counts, however it's expressed. So go ahead and finish patching me up. Then we can both get some sleep." Buffy suggested.

"Uh…yeah, good idea…" Dawn nodded slowly.

"Okay, so how do I start with this?" Dawn asked suddenly, holding up the bandage to wrap the gash on Buffy's arm with. Buffy gave her a confused look before she moved her arm, the one with the gash, and hissed at the pain from a wound she hadn't even been certain she had. Dawn's features became even more child-like as her eyes watered and she paled from the sight and sound of Buffy in pain.

Buffy smiled assuredly at her and used her good arm to raise her hand and caressed the side of Dawn's face. _She is so adorably cute_, Buffy thought. _I just want to kiss her and hold her all night until all the bad things in our lives go away._

Buffy then put her hand down as she flashed on a moment of sanity when she realized where her thoughts might be leading. Not that they were leading to a bad place per say, but…wrong. A very, very, _very_ wrong place.

"Uh, just…hold the end in place to one side of the wound, and then carefully wrap it all the way around until all of the edges of it are covered by the bandage. I'll close it up when you're done." Buffy explained.

"Uh, okay," Dawn said a bit timidly and moved back to behind Buffy and quickly did as her sister had instructed, covering the cleaned wound with the pure white bandage. Once she was done, Buffy quickly fixed it shut with some tape from the First Aid kit and had it done.

After all that, all that remained was the ugly bruise on her leg, and then her broken, er, cracked ribs. That would be the trickiest part without a doubt. And though the bruise, now that she saw it, would still be there by tomorrow morning, it would only give her a stiff leg, nothing of too much of a hindrance. She might have to ask Xander to patrol with her tomorrow night.

"Uh, OK, now what?" Dawn asked when they had finished with the last task.

Buffy grimaced and tried to reach behind her to unsnap her bra while explaining to Dawn, "Now comes the (grunt) hard part. (Gasp) We have to (grunt) wrap up my (whimper) ribs (gasp). Dawn, can you help me get my bra off?"

At the simple and, considering everything, somewhat normal request, Dawn froze. Then after another moment or two, and a concerned look from Buffy, she rather awkwardly got back onto the bed behind Buffy and trying very hard not to think about what she was doing, unclipped the black silk bra.

Thinking that Buffy might be inconvenienced if she left it like that, Dawn slowly eased the straps from Buffy's back, being careful of the bandages on the one arm, and leaned forward to ease the undergarment off her sister's body. She stopped when she suddenly found herself leaning against Buffy's bare back, the material still in her hands, her long arms not quite long enough to get it past and out of Buffy's arms.

Dawn wasn't sure what to do next as she felt her hardened nipples slide erotically against the tanned skin with both hers and Buffy's suddenly erratic breathing. She did find that she had to reposition her legs around Buffy's tiny waist so that she wouldn't lose her balance, which at the same time had the effect of placing the bare skin of her inner thighs directly against the bare skin of Buffy's hips and thighs.

Buffy didn't have any idea what was going on, but she couldn't help the sensations of Dawn's chest, covered only by very flimsy cotton material, poking into her bare back and their naked thighs, and thankfully covered waists, as they incestially rubbed against each other. Her eyes closed in ecstasy and her mouth opened to allow access for her gasping breath.

After a moment of the simple, but severely intense sensations, Buffy realized that Dawn had stopped moving. She glanced down and saw that her sister was still holding her bra. "You know Dawn," Buffy whispered huskily to the lolita behind her, "You can drop the underwear. It'll just drop to the floor."

"Huh?" Dawn squeaked, pulled out of the reverie of sensation she had been pulled into.

"My bra? Drop it."

"Oh," Dawn almost started, but managed not to, for fear of causing Buffy more pain. She just dropped the under garment and then just kinda left her arms, and the rest of her, right where they were. Buffy wasn't about to tell her to move either.

After another very tense minute of this, neither Summers girl willing to move, fearing to cause one of them pain or discomfort, though there was already discomfort present, Dawn timidly, with heavy breath, whispered, her warm breath heating the back of her older sister's neck, "So, uh, now what?"

Dawn heard a brief whimper that she mistook for pain from Buffy, which caused her to panic and immediately backed away from her sister. Buffy was all of a sudden very glad her sister had done that, and prayed that she had not been heard when she had whimpered, "Fuck me."

Clearing her throat and turning halfway and as comfortably as possible, considering she was clad only in silk near see-through thong panties, and Dawn was in nothing but a green tank top, that had been hiked up to above her hips and was practically molded to her young, swelling breasts, and a pair of pure white thong panties that looked disturbingly familiar to Buffy. Her eyes were unwillingly drawn to her sister's crotch, and despite the sisterly indignation that spurred the movement, her nasty subconscious, which was being more naughty than she had ever recalled it being, couldn't help but force her eyes to linger over specific areas longer than her indignation should have reasoned for.

"Are those my panties?" Buffy snapped sisterly.

Dawn blinked in surprise and looked down, blushing and already knowing the answer. "Uh…" Dawn stuttered, her mind desperately seeking an answer. Her mouth decided before she did to just stick with the truth. "Yes," she answered timidly, flushing bright red.

Buffy blinked, and before she had registered the thought, it had already been sent to her mouth before she could weigh what she would be saying. "Take them off this instant! That is so disgusting, almost. You could have at least asked me! And if you needed underwear, you should have done your laundry!"

"Buffy, the basement flooded last time we did the laundry," Dawn answered as she stood to her feet off the bed. Buffy stared in disbelief for all of two seconds as her baby sister's hands went to her waist, before settling the thumbs into the underwear.

"What-what are you doing?!" Buffy panicky asked.

"You told me to take of my…_your_ panties." Dawn answered succinctly. "Sorry, next time I'll ask." And then as Buffy watched, she stripped the undergarment and left it on the floor before moving back to the bed. Thankfully, her tank top had fallen back over her waist before Buffy could have hoped to catch a glimpse of her sister's snatch. She was ashamed to find that for a briefest of seconds, she _had_ hoped.

Seeing that her sister had no more arguments, or things to blame on her, Dawn quickly settled back on the bed behind Buffy, putting herself nearly as close as she had been before. Except now she was much more comfortable with her sudden closeness with her sister. It seemed that having taken off her…_sister's_ panties had removed her inhibitions and fears just as hastily.

"So now what?" Dawn repeated innocently.

Buffy just stared blankly at the space her sister had stood moments before taking off _her_ panties, and remained unresponsive until Dawn gently rolled her fist into Buffy's shoulder, jarring her enough that she recalled, through pain, what they were _supposed_ to be doing. "Uh…_right_! Right…uhm, need-need to-um-to wrap-wrap my ribs up. Keep them from getting knocked around anymore than they already are."

"Oh, OK," Dawn almost bubbled, for some strange reason, greatly enjoying her proximity of intimacy with her sister at the moment. "So…what do I do first?"

"Uh, right." Buffy mumbled and quickly tried to distract her mind and focused it on her surroundings, or rather anything but her younger (and very nubile…STOP IT!) _sister_! She looked at what they had to work with and grabbed the bandages commonly used for this type of thing and the medical tape and the only sharp instruments in the kit, the scissors.

Dangerous images came to mind when Buffy's eyes focused on those scissors. Ways to use those sharp and cold metallic blades, ways to hurt someone, to kill, to cut with… To cut material with… Clothing type material… It would be _so_ easy to cut the last bit of material from her sister's body… let it fall away… then she'd be naked… and then they could…

**STOP IT!!** Buffy screamed silently to herself, her thoughts creating such reactions from her that Dawn thought she was having convulsions or an attack of some kind. Fear of such happenings had increased rapidly since the sudden and recent demise of their mother.

The slightest thought of their mother, _her_ mother, immediately cooled all of Buffy's jets and brought every ache she had suddenly to bear. "Uhh, first, I need to make sure none of my ribs are poking into my lungs or broken away from each other," she explained to Dawn, her voice tightly controlled, "If they are, then I need to set them before you wrap them up. After that, I just need to rest for a while and get plenty of food. Energy, ya know?"

Dawn smiled, her face beaming up at her sister's, "Yeah, I know," she said kinda dreamily. Then she seemed to shake herself and repeated, "I mean, yeah, I understand now. So, while I'm getting the bandages ready to wrap and stuff, you'll be feeling your own chest?"

Buffy glared at her sister at the barely veiled innuendo. Dawn just blushed when she caught her sister's stare, who unlike what she thought was a stern look was in fact more of an unbridled gaze of unadulterated lust. After that, Buffy turned her attention inward and set about looking to heal herself, calculatingly feeling around her ribs, carefully with her fingers.

Dawn stood up and quickly retrieved what Buffy had told her they needed, inadvertently shifting the tank top so that her hips, and below, were fully exposed. Buffy managed to keep on track for all of ten seconds before her eyes caught and locked onto the full moon her sibling was giving her. Gulping and her breath becoming considerably more rapid, which caused enough pain for her to focus back on what she was _supposed_ to be focusing on, Buffy tried to get a grip on her hormones and the rest of her emotions, and went, albeit slower and with a sense of greater distraction, back to feeling which of her ribs needed to be set and wrapped.

Finally, Dawn had gathered all she needed and turned back to Buffy, not bothering to fix the only clothing she was wearing, and sat back on her haunches to wait for her sister's next instructions, once again inadvertently leaving her neatly trimmed, as well as swollen and wet, pussy open to the air and Buffy's wandering eyes.

Buffy had to exert an extraordinary amount of will to keep her eyes and fingers on their appointed task, however still stealing glances at the view her sister had unconsciously given her. To force herself back on her task, she jabbed one of the ribs, incidentally resetting it at the same time as waking her up with a massive jolt of pain that made her grunt. She then turned her eyes to an empty spot on her bed's comforter and would not allow herself to look anywhere other than there while she quickly finished her self-examination.

"Buffy, are you ok?" Dawn asked innocently and worriedly when she heard Buffy grunt. At first the Slayer didn't answer, but after she finally finished, confirming that she had four injuries on her left side; two cracked, two broken and reset, and two cracked ribs on her right side, Buffy took a deep, slow breath, keeping her eyes on the one spot, and answered her sister. "I need you to get behind me. Hold the wrap against my spine and feed it to me under my right arm. I'll wrap it around where it needs to go and then feed it to you under my left arm. Just take it straight back around and feed it under my right arm again. When we're finished, I'll tape it up."

"OK," Dawn meekly replied, thinking that her sister was being so aloof all of a sudden because of the pain, and maybe even because of the coming pain. "Uh, where should I hold it?" Dawn asked once she was behind her sister again.

"Uh…" Buffy didn't have an answer at the ready for that question so she just said, "Just put it anywhere on my back that's not bruised and I'll tell you if I need it moved or not, all right?"

"All right," Dawn said and put the end of the tape somewhere between her shoulder blades.

"Uhm…" Buffy found it suddenly incredibly difficult to concentrate with the nymphette's…HER SISTER'S…hands on her skin, touching her. "A little bit lower than that Dawn," she whispered huskily, her eyes closed in effort to keep concentration.

Dawn shifted the bandage, without picking it up off Buffy's back, down a couple inches. The sensation was undeniably wonderful to Buffy's pain-wracked body. "Ah—uh, little more…down, please," Buffy, whispered again.

Smirking, Dawn decided to be a brat, despite the situation, and slid the tape all the way down to Buffy's tailbone. The Slayer couldn't hope to repress the shiver that ran through her body if her whole life depended on it. "A…little higher now Dawn," Buffy whispered, surprising the younger Summers that she hadn't scolded her on being a brat.

Shrugging it off, Dawn slid it up to just beneath where Buffy's ribs started on her back. Again, Buffy shivered, but the Slayer was not yet lost enough to her passionate instincts to ignore what she needed over what she _desperately_ wanted. "That's fine!" she snapped a little too harshly, even to her own ears. "Just hold it there," she said in a calmer tone before Dawn could jump away.

She then began the arduous and painful task of wrapping her ribs back together. It took of a lot of wind-around, and over fifteen minutes to get everything set and secure, but finally, Buffy's ribs were fully patched up. Much to her dismay however, given the situation of the past half hour, her breasts were still left uncovered.

After the bandages were secure, Buffy was still afraid to move, but not because of pain. Pain was her friend and life companion. She was afraid of Dawn seeing her naked breasts, and seeing her sister again in as little as she wore was a combination of way too much temptation that the Slayer was sure she could never ignore. Finally a moment of sane inspiration reached her and with only turning her neck, she asked her sister, "Dawn, would you mind getting me a nightshirt please?"

"Sure, no prob," Dawn said easily and stood up and went to the dresser to retrieve a T-shirt, the only kind of which Buffy had in her drawers were the too-large kind worn for sleeping.

Instead of returning to her position behind the Slayer and handing the wanted garment over her shoulder, Dawn took the extra three steps to stand in front of Buffy, holding out the shirt. Her green tank top a little bunched and _just barely_ covering her waist, the bottom hem staying level with the bottom of the teen's waist to Buffy's vision.

Rather than commenting, or even covering herself for that matter, Buffy just retrieved the shirt and fit her arms carefully into the sleeves. Just as she was raising it to put on, she noticed that Dawn was staring at her, or to be more accurate was staring at her breasts, with a strange look on her face.

"You mind?" Buffy asked in a soft, husky voice, her arms still raised.

"Not at all," Dawn said in the same husky whisper and before either realized it, Dawn pulled and stripped the tank top off her lithe petite form and tossed it off to a forgotten corner. Buffy blinked and could only stare. Her "baby" sister's body was anything but to her experienced eye.

Dawn's height came mostly from her incredibly long, smooth, creamy and lightly tanned legs. Her abdomen was soft, but highlighted by the underlying muscles, and smoother and creamier than the teen's legs, only pockmarked by the dimple of her navel, precisely in the center and begging Buffy to lick it. Her B-cup breasts were youthful and uplifting, her pink nipples small and crinkled, hard, and were an even bigger temptation than the navel to Buffy.

All of this teenage beauty was highlighted of course by Dawn's face, which still held that strange look on it, and now Buffy could almost easily identify it, because she was sure the same look was on her own; pure unadulterated lust.

They only stared, soaking in the other's feminine beauty, for mere seconds before Dawn leaned forward, almost falling onto the bed really, but mostly just falling onto Buffy's lips as the older Summer's welcomed her with a kiss of her own, the T-shirt forgotten and thrown away in favor of holding Dawn instead.

The kiss was every bit as passionate and lustful as the whole night had been, and Buffy couldn't help but revel in the thrill of following her instincts. As much as she hated to admit it, slaying, especially a hefty slay like tonight, _always_ got Buffy "hot and bothered", or as Faith had put it to her friends upon first meeting, "hungry and horny". She wasn't hungry, at least not for food, but even she could not believe how absolutely out of control _horny_ she was!

"Oh Dawn!" Buffy huskily shouted as Dawn began to gingerly kiss her way down Buffy's jaw and neck.

"Mmmm," Dawn moaned, as she tasted her older sister's skin flavor. She briefly paused when she got to the scar at the crook of her neck and gently kissed it before moving on to the other side.

Buffy gasped her breath at the sensations her baby sister's lips and tongue were causing. And she wasn't exactly lying there like a limp noodle either. No, her hands were all over Dawn's petite, yet very nubile frame. Rubbing up and down her back, brushing across her breasts, while her legs constantly rubbed up against her sister's long legs, slowly but methodically drawing them further open.

Dawn gasped into Buffy's mouth when the Slayer's right hand had strayed a little to between them and pressed against the former Key's lower waist. Buffy smiled as her other hand made its way, slowly stroking the spine under it, to Dawn's ass and her right hand went just a touch lower. Dawn's legs were wide open as well, held so by Buffy's own legs, leaving her entirely open and left to her sister's mercy.

"Oh Buffy!" Dawn gasped at the incredible and new sensations she was feeling, her eyes tightly shut, it was all so intense.

Buffy couldn't help but loving that face, so filled with passion, it was burned onto her memory. She also could barely contain herself at the thought of Dawn's face when she was actually orgasming. Buffy smirked at that thought and quickly consumed her sister's lips once more, her hands tortuously slipping closer to their common goal.

Dawn had no idea what had come over the both of them, but deep down she knew that normally, neither of them would be acting anything like this, but she was not about to deny how good it all felt. The passion she felt for her sister in these moments was the most intense thing she had ever felt in her entire life. Actual, or false memory, and what Buffy was doing to her aroused her deep inside that she felt her arousal flowing like a river out of her and into Buffy's hands.

When the former Key finally noticed that she was wide open and completely vulnerable, she paused briefly enough to orient where exactly her sister was touching her. She felt the Slayer's strong hands around her waist, one beneath them stroking her backside, one finger actually skirting the edge of her asshole, and the other directly between them, stroking and massaging her folds, making her hum with the pleasure.

Suddenly it all changed when Buffy gave her another searing kiss, taking her breath away. At the exact same moment, two fingers entered her between her folds, her first "real" penetration, at least up to the second knuckle, and at her ass… Buffy's pinky finger slid, forcefully, all the way up her sister's ass.

Dawn was so hot and high-strung that the total combination of stimulation was too much for her and for the first time in her life, for the first of many to come, she came. And she came _hard_.

Buffy held on, only capable because of her status as the Slayer, as her baby sister thrashed and writhed under her hand, her right drenched in Dawn's cum, and listened to the teenager cry out her pleasure, the moans and gasps like the sweetest music in the world to the older Summers, making her feel warm inside. And even hotter than before.

Slowly, once Dawn had come down from her orgasmic high, Buffy trailed wet kisses up the petite's body until they were once again face to face and deeply kissed her sister, bringing her back from the edge, and pulling her towards another at the same instant.

Gasping at the feelings coursing through her young body, Dawn tried desperately to reciprocate to the Slayer, but the supernatural demon fighter, despite being injured, was too strong to just flip over. So Dawn tried a more subtle way, starting by kissing every part of Buffy that was near her lips, and calmly soothing and stroking the skin of the wild beast that was the Slayer.

Despite never having done anything like this before, Buffy felt as if she were being guided by some unseen force, something that at least knew what it was doing, and how to please the female body beneath her. Trailing with kisses, Buffy moved down to Dawn's surprisingly mature tit and began to bathe it until she reached the tiny little rosebud of the young one's nipple, which she slurped into her mouth without a single thought, suckling on it like the both of them had once suckled on their mother's teat.

Dawn's breathing accelerated beyond her control, coming in short, sharp gasps as the older blonde pleasured her breasts with her tongue and lips. Unable to do much other than feel and occasionally jerk her hips in a rhythmic grinding motion, Dawn just lay back and let Buffy do to her as she willed, bringing her arms up to hold her sister's head to her chest.

Arching her back when Buffy suddenly moved to her other tit, Dawn cried out as her pleasure peaked again, and was surprised when she felt Buffy's hands drifting towards her center once again. Just when she thought the orgasm had finished once again, her sister's hands reached her pussy and while the fingers of one hand held the lips apart, the other began stroking her inner folds, and pinching her clit tightly with her forefingers.

The pleasure returned so quickly and so abruptly that Dawn felt herself falling off the peak once again, and then again, and again as Buffy just kept up the pace and sometimes alternating between her breasts. "Oh, oh, oh gawd! No more! Buffy! No more, please! I can't take any more!" Dawn cried in between the peaks of her multi-orgasm.

Instead of letting up, Buffy's pace increased, and then her fingers abandoned the teenager's clit, letting Dawn think she was actually going to stop and let her catch her breath for a minute or two. How wrong she was.

Smirking to herself, Buffy put her left index and middle fingers together, and then with brutal efficiency, driven by insatiable lust and whatever else was controlling her, wormed her way into Dawn's cunt, going up to the second knuckle on both fingers up her incredibly tight, moist channel until she came to the dam. A truly evil grin crossed the Slayer's face as she mercilessly shoved her fingers further up, tearing out Dawn's hymen, and taking her sister's virginity.

The pain was practically unnoticeable to Dawn, she was so high on the pleasure overload her sister had put her in. In fact the pain actually made her pleasure even more intense, sparking off another round of multiple orgasms in the taut teenage body.

Savoring it for the moment, Buffy pulled her fingers out, noticing the pussy juice and virgin blood mixture covering her hand, and couldn't stop herself from licking to get a taste. Mmm, so sweet, yet strong as well. Shivering, Buffy switched hands, pushing her right hand into the blood-soaked cunt, pumping her fingers relentlessly into the worn pussy, while shoving her left hand, covered in Dawns own blood and nectar, into her sister's mouth, where she suckled it like a cock-loving whore giving the best blow job of her life.

"That's it you horny bitch, suck up your own cunt-blood," Buffy hoarsely whispered the first words spoken in minutes. "Suck it up and be mine for eternity."

Willow was practically glowing as she and Tara lay together in bed, naked, covered only by their own sweat and juices, just as it should always be.

"I love you Tara," the redhead whispered, trailing her hand in a sensual caress along her lover's side.

"I know," Tara whispered back, her eyes closed, but her own hand returning the caresses.

"Do you love me?" a minor insecurity asked, despite the power of the spell, they had already exhausted themselves of their pleasure and passion.

"I think I just more than proved my feelings not too long ago," the blonde replied, effectively evading the question.

"Are you still in love with me?"

The question was ignored, and that worried the young woman, but she didn't have time to mull over it as Tara seemed to suddenly get a fifth wind, so to speak, and they started all over again, this time making slow, passionate, intense love.

It would be dawn soon.

END...?


	29. Highland Ninja : He Cannot Die

Part One: _He Cannot Die_

_Konohagakure_

_Hokage Tower_

_One Week Later_

Naruto sighed.

It had been over a week since the mission where his life had abruptly and suddenly turned on its end. It had been more than a week now since Sasuke had been taken from the Village, and then walked away from it under his own power in the end. It has also been a week full of tests, probes, blood taking, exams, and having both Tsunade and Jiraiya poke and prod him all over off and on for the entire week.

For some reason, despite being in perfect health, though he'd heard a rumor that it was _because_ he was in perfect health, he'd been restricted to the Konoha Hospital for the majority of that week, only able to go out for a few minutes at a time, and occasionally to have lunch with Iruka-sensei. They didn't let him go all the way to Ichiraku Ramen, but he and his former Academy Instructor were allowed to take their meals with them up to the roof. He wasn't the only one from that mission that was staying in the Hospital, unfortunately. In fact, only Shikamaru had been discharged after a single night of observation. That didn't mean he wasn't there just as much as the rest of them though.

Now, finally, Naruto had been summoned to the Hokage Tower, alongside the rest of his team, which unfortunately only included Sakura and Kakashi now. The first time Sakura had seen him after the mission, she'd actually apologized for intruding and left before coming back a half an hour later, still wondering if she had the right room. After staring at his face for a few minutes, she'd goggled and tried multiple times to dispel the illusion, only for nothing to happen.

She wasn't the only one, he'd noticed, that were surprised and staring at his new look. On Jiraiya's and Kakashi's advice, he'd put together a new outfit, seeing as how all his old clothes would no longer fit him, and in an odd display of generosity, they'd bought all the clothes he could possibly need, only asking that they help him out in choosing an outfit.

Currently, he was wearing a form-fitting, yet still loose, pair of navy-blue pants, a navy t-shirt with a black full-sleeved unbuttoned shirt over that, and an old dirty-orange armored vest Kakashi found laying around somewhere. Over that, Jiraiya produced a full-length armored trench coat, colored the same orange as his jumpsuit had been with navy-blue flames embroidered along the bottom edges and sleeve cuffs. On the back a series of kanji were stitched that read "Future Hokage" in bright gold. He'd also had to get a new headband, choosing to get one with black cloth and extra-long bands that trailed down his back.

On his way to the Tower from the Hospital wearing his new outfit, Naruto noticed quite a few people giving him double-takes, and more spit-takes than he'd seen since that time he'd pranked the Hyuuga robes to match his favorite color. A few people, he also saw, seemed to get tears in their eyes and glanced frequently up at the Hokage Monument before turning back to just stare at him. To be quite honest, it was freaking him out.

"Oi, baa-chan!" Naruto shouted the second he slammed open the door to the Hokage's office. "What's the meaning of keeping me locked up for a week at that horrid place?!! You may like it with all those freaky smells and clean walls and stuff, but it just freaks me out I tell ya! You had no right to make me suffer like that! So what if the mission wasn't a complete success, just say the word and I'll go drag Sasuke back here kicking and screaming if I have to!"

"..."

The occupants of the room, which happened to include all of the rookie genin teams of Konoha, their Jounin Senseis, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Shizune, Tonton (Tsunade's pet pig), as well as Iruka, Anko, and some guy that was turned away from him, facing the balcony windows. He only noted that because he was somebody Naruto did not know, and he was standing as far away from Naruto as was possible at the moment and still be in the room.

"What?" he finally blurted out, uncomfortable with the sudden silence after his outburst.

"You were right," Tsunade said to Jiraiya. "It's uncanny how much he looks like him now. Have you had any luck, Jiraiya?"

"None," the white-haired sage sighed. "There's no explanation for it either, at least none that is obvious."

"Uh... what's going on?" Naruto asked, taking a few steps into the room.

"We're discussing..." Tsunade started to answer him, but Naruto didn't hear the rest of what she said as a sudden vibrating buzz filled his head.

If he wasn't already used to odd sensations and overwhelming pain from chakra burns and chakra exhaustion, he might have collapsed in pain in the first few seconds. As it was, he just stopped, his face went pale and he bent over, grasping his head as his brain felt like it was being overloaded with... something! And if that weren't enough, his chakra began to respond with the same overwhelming vibrating buzz, starting at his extremities and transferring the vibration throughout his entire frame so it was like his entire body were a piece of dust on a drum that was being hit by hundreds of people, one right after the other in a never-ending cycle of vibration and 'noise'.

Naruto's eyes immediately locked onto the stranger in the room, who'd spun around with shock written on his face. The man was tall, around six feet at a glance, with shoulder-length light brown hair, held back by a simple red bandanna, the ends of which trailed down to the middle of his back. He wore a beaten trench coat, worn down to a mixed brown and gray from weather and abuse. Beneath it he had on a black tank top, mauve camo-pants, and heavy-tread combat boots. At his waist, other than the ornate belt-buckle, Naruto noticed a serviceable katana, sheathed in a black scabbard.

The instant their eyes locked onto one another, the 'Buzz' dropped to almost nothing, though Naruto could still faintly detect it, much like he could sense chakra most of the time. No longer overwhelmed by the sensation coming from his head and his chakra, Naruto reacted instantly, drawing two kunai from hidden pockets in a flash and regarded the stranger with extreme caution.

"Who... no, _what_ the hell are you? What did you just do to me?" he demanded.

There was a general outburst for Naruto to calm down and to berate him for trying to assault a guest of the Hokage and other general ruckus, but the older-looking blond ignored it in favor of keeping his eyes on the unknown in the room that he sensed a threat from, however limited or subdued that threat might be was irrelevant, though he could tell that the man was not an active threat, otherwise Naruto wouldn't have bothered with kunai and gone straight for a Rasengan, putting himself between the stranger and everyone else in the room. Finally, everyone quieted down when the stranger spoke out loud, regarding Naruto.

"... Not bad," the man chuckled. "Good instincts too, by the way. I am Colin Macleod, an old friend from across the seas. I was told, by another old friend, to come back to Konoha as soon as I could and to have a few words with the active Hokage. I am not a threat to anyone here, Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto started, then slowly put away his weapons, before finally asking, "How do you know my name?"

"I told him your name, why do you think I asked for you to come here, gaki!" Tsunade snapped at him, slamming her hand on the desk, drawing everyone's attention towards her.

"Eh," Naruto blushed, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Sorry, baa-chan."

Tick marks started bursting out all along Tsunade's head as she struggled to maintain her temper.

Naruto helped immensely by switching from his normal personality to shinobi-serious with his next words. "Macleod-san, would you mind telling me what you just did to me? And I know it was you."

"Like I said, good instincts," Colin chuckled briefly. "The short of it is quite simply, the only reason I am here in Konoha is to tell you, Uzumaki Naruto, that your... Bloodline Limit, your _Kekkai Genkai_ has been activated. It happened after your battle with the one called... Uchiha Sasuke. I honestly don't know who that is or what happened, but the one that asked me to come here at this time gave me that information and said it would explain some things for you."

"Wha... I-I... I have a Kekkai Genkai?" Naruto mumbled, shock overriding his system.

Everyone else in the room were experiencing their own levels and variations of shock at this. Amongst Naruto's fellow genin especially. The adults among the group were, of course, just as shocked to hear this, with only two exceptions in Tsunade and Jiraiya, but they were all much more controlled in their reactions.

"WHAT?!!" Neji, Kiba and Choji all screamed at once.

"YOSH! Naruto-kun now burns with the Flames of Youth in a New Light!" Lee exclaimed.

"YOSH! CONTINUE TO WORK HARD NARUTO-KUN! IGNITE YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH SO ALL MAY SEE IT!" Gai shouted at top volume. This was immediately followed by Lee and Gai's usual little song and dance.

"Say WHAT!!?!" Ino and Sakrua screamed, then began to belittle and deny Naruto's 'claim' to having a bloodline limit, adding to the general noise of the room.

Besides the Hokage, the Toad Sage, and the stranger, only Hinata and Shino remained quiet throughout all of this.

Finally, enough was enough and Tsunade silenced the room with a shouted, "SHUT UP!!" coupled with her shattering her desk into tiny wood splinters with a slow punch. Instant quiet.

Naruto took advantage of the quiet, before anyone else could stop him or think to ask their own questions. He looked the stranger right in the eye and demanded to know, "What do you mean I have a Kekkai Genkai? What is it? And how the hell do you know about it, huh?!"

Colin grinned, like he were watching some private play put on for his personal enjoyment. After a few seconds, he answered the blond ninja, "As I told you, I was told what to tell you by another... old friend. You may meet him some day, but all you really need to know about him is that he knows a lot about you. Meanwhile, I know a lot about your... Kekkai Genkai, which I'll tell you more about later. In private."

"Actually, since this concerns my student," Kakashi started to say, "I feel I have the right to..."

"When I say in private, I mean in private," Colin interrupted in a no-nonsense tone of voice. "If Naruto wants to tell you later, that's his choice. I am to tell Naruto, alone, the information he needs to know. Anyone else... well, let's just say I'm not in the mood to play games today and leave it at that."

"Kakashi, stand down," Tsunade snapped when it looked like the Copycat Ninja was about to do something stupid. "Jiraiya and I both know the details of Naruto's bloodline limit, though neither of us knew he would receive it until it activated one week ago. And since we're talking about it, let me make this perfectly clear right here and now." She stood to her feet and put her fists on her shapely hips, glaring at everyone equally, save a select few.

"No one in this room is to question Naruto about his bloodline limit, whether that's to reveal it or just to talk about it. Anyone that disobeys this DIRECT ORDER, will be doing D-Rank missions for the rest of their career! Do I make myself clear?"

"HAI HOKAGE-SAMA!" the room practically roared in fearful reply.

"Good," Tsunade was suddenly all sweetness and smiles. "Now that that's out of the way, Macleod-san, you may take Naruto at your leisure once our next bit of business is done. Until then, I ask your patience."

"I've got lots of patience," the man dully replied, turning back to look out the windows.

Naruto was kinda creeped out and reminded of Sasuke at the same time.

"Naruto!" Tsunade yelled to get his attention, once she had it, she ordered, "Give your full report, now!"

"H-hai!" Naruto saluted and the proceeded to give a detailed account of the mission to retrieve Sasuke, much more detailed than his summary to Kakashi on the day of, which he also included in his report to Tsunade, causing his sensei to look down shamefully when Naruto reported that he was knocked unconscious when he honestly did need only a few minutes rest before resuming the hunt for his teammate.

"Very well," Tsunade folded her hands before her face, resting her elbows on her brand new desk that had come in while Naruto was giving his report. "I have already heard from the rest of you on this. Unfortunately, seeing as you did not fulfill the mission requirements, I must list this as a failure in the books. Still, there are no lasting casualties, and Naruto has a new ability because of this, making Konoha potentially stronger for the future. Therefore, there will be no consequences, but equally no rewards for this mission."

"Tsunade," Jiraiya reminded her.

She nodded and gestured to him, saying, "Jiraiya will now brief all of you on what we know of Orochimaru's operations as well as his Village Otogakure. Jiraiya?"

What followed was a half-hour lecture on subjects that were too vital to be boring, which Jiraiya further emphasized by not once making a perverted remark. Once the genin were all caught up on the relevant information, Tsunade resumed informing them of the changes this information forced them to make.

"As of this date," she told them, "your teams are officially dissolved. Uchiha Sasuke is being listed as a C-Rank Missing Ninja, to be brought back alive preferably, but there are some that are wanting to make that alive _OR_ dead."

"No! I can bring him back, Tsunade-baachan! I know I can! Just give me a chance!" Naruto begged.

"Enough!" she snapped at him. "As Jiraiya just explained, in a way that even you can understand, Naruto. Sasuke could be at any number of hidden bunkers in any number of countries and nowhere near Otogakure's location. Until we have evidence of where he is, we cannot send anyone there, let alone a rookie genin that just discovered a Kekkai Genkai he doesn't know how to control yet!"

Naruto blushed, and would have argued further, except for her mentioning what had happened to him. He backed down with a heavy sigh. Seeing this, Tsunade continued.

"Now, as I was saying, your individual teams are no longer in place, therefore you will all be remade into new teams, some of which will be interchangeable. Team 7 will be the ones mostly affected by this as they just lost a member, and as I understand it, Naruto must undergo training for his Kekkai Genkai before resuming his duties." She looked to Colin behind her for confirmation of this.

He nodded, then added, "Not as much as you might think, but he'll be ready after a few weeks to start training himself. Until then though, I'll have to teach him quite a bit. We may also need to leave Konoha for a time, though not immediately, I thought you should be aware."

"Thank you," she acknowledged.

Turning back to the now team-less genin, she accepted a folder from Shizune and listed, "The former Team Ten is now known as Team Asuma and it includes Jounin Sarutobi Asuma as Team Leader, Chuunin Nara Shikamaru as Second and Team Strategist, Genin Akamichi Choji, Genin Yamanaka Ino, and Genin Haruna Sakura. Just so you are aware, Asuma, I have taken Sakura as my apprentice in medical ninjutsu, and Shizune has taken Ino as hers. Keep their _busy_ schedules in mind when making out your training schedule."

Letting out a puff of smoke, Asuma nodded and accepted the folder from the Hokage, along with a mission scroll, which she explained, "Your new Team's first mission is a simple C-Rank, escorting our routine caravan of merchants to the Capitol. It will let you iron out any disharmonies with them."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," he accepted the mission.

Accepting another folder from Shizune, Tsunade listed off, "The former Team Eight, unfortunately, is being split up. Your team, while impressive in it's early missions, have individually shown they all need more training. All of you. Jounin Kurenai is being temporarily assigned as co-leader of Team Asuma for their next ten missions. Genin Hyuuga Hinata, your father has petitioned to have you removed from the active roster so you may receive more training in your clan's taijutsu and ninjutsu arts. I'm hereby approving that, putting you on extended training leave for one month. Get stronger sooner and I'll see what I can do."

"Genin Aburame Shino, your clan have submitted the same petition, and I'm also approving that. I look forward to seeing how much the only member of Team Eight to make it to the final round of the Chuunin Exams will do after further training in your clan's arts," she smirked when the cloaked boy seemed to hide even deeper in his coat, possibly blushing.

"Genin Inuzuka Kiba... You suck, you need more training, so because of your teammates, I'm putting you on the same leave just because of that," she glared at him, daring him to argue. He might not have been that smart, but thankfully for the temperamental boy, his dog Akamaru was not and a quick 'Yip!' in his ear calmed the Inuzuka enough for the Hokage to move on.

"In one month's time, we'll see about reforming Team Eight into Team Kurenai, until then, work hard," she said, then accepted another folder from Shizune. "Team Gai, nothing changes for you except that you now have a second Jounin Team Leader, Jounin Hatake Kakashi. Don't give me that look, Hatake. If you want, think of this as your punishment. Consider this a direct order, if any one of you are late by even a single minute, not to mention three hours! Then it will be up to the Primary Team Leader, in this case Jounin Might Gai, to determine your punishment, whatever that may be. That would include you, Secondary Team Leader Jounin Hatake Kakashi. Is that understood?"

"YOSH!" Gai and Lee screamed out loud in one voice.

Kakashi looked like he'd been told the entire Icha Icha series was being canceled as well as every single last copy being burned in the town square at midnight, but he acknowledged the order all the same.

"Uh, and what about me, baa-chan?" Naruto nervously asked her.

She didn't say anything, just jerked her thumb over her shoulder, pointing it at Colin Macleod, still standing by the window behind her.

"Oh yeah," Naruto blushed, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"We're done," Tsunade announced. "Dismissed!"

Immediately all the ninja left, except for Naruto, Jiraiya, Shizune and Tsunade herself. Naruto hung around, simply because he was waiting on Colin, who was still just staring out the window.

"Shizune," the Hokage interrupted the silence, "Go ahead and file these. And start Sakura and Ino on the basics this afternoon at the Hospital. I do not want to be disturbed for the rest of the day."

Glancing back and forth between the remaining occupants of the room, Shizune nodded and dutifully replied, "Hai, Tsunade-sama." She then took all the paperwork, and Tonton, with her and left.

Once they were alone, the two Sannin silently regarded the Uzumaki and Macleod respectively. Naruto, for his part, was just nervously waiting because that's what he'd been told to do, but more so because this stranger knew more about him than he apparently knew about himself!

"So," Naruto began the conversation, cautiously regarding the other man, "what exactly is this bloodline limit I'm supposed to have?"

"That was actually a cock and bull story to tell the masses," Colin coldly replied. "I literally was told to say exactly that, when asked to come here. At first I wasn't even going to come near this place, but... I owe the person that asked me to come more than I can ever repay. I want you to remember that, even if you don't believe what I'm going to tell you next, believe that much at least."

Naruto slowly nodded, understanding, at least a little bit, of the kind of relationship and promise the man spoke of. Then he listened as Colin continued speaking.

"You do not have a bloodline limit. You are an Immortal, you cannot die, and you will live forever, unless you lose your head. Oh, and let's go ahead and get the painful stuff out of the way too. You cannot have children, you will never grow old or die of old age while everyone else does, and you're going to have to spend the rest of your immortal life fighting and killing to survive." Colin told him, all in a voice that never changed in pitch or tone.

Naruto stared. He blinked once. Twice. Three times. Then hit himself on the head and asked, "Huh?!"

"He cannot die?" Tsunade asked, sounding both shocked and impressed.

"He, we," Colin corrected himself, "can only die by one method. Decapitation. Anything else, it either heals over, reattaches, or sometimes regenerates. That's where that last part comes in by the way. Immortals fight in what we call the 'Game'. One on one fights, duels to the death where the winner takes the losers power, their Quickening, that which makes us immortal. And because I know all three of you are dying to know, I am one thousand nine hundred and twenty-two years old."

"No way," Naruto protested, his voice quivering. It was obvious he wasn't talking about Colin's age.

"I have lots of ways I can prove what I said, but we'll use the less painful and humiliating ways first," Colin sighed. "Ask Jiraiya and Tsunade when they first met me. This is not the first time I've been in Konoha. In fact, it's my fourth."

"I don't remember seeing you before," Naruto remarked, scratching his chin and trying to recall where he'd seen Colin's face before. "But I'm not really that good with faces!"

"Naruto," Jiraiya spoke, his voice quite serious, with none of the usual light, perverted tones.

"Huh? Oh right, so Ero-sennin, when was the first time you met ji-jii here?" Naruto chuckled.

"Twenty-five years ago, when I first made jounin and a few days before I took my first genin team," Jiraiya replied, all business, his arms crossed and his eyes steady. However much Naruto wished it, he knew the pervy sage was not lying.

"That... that's not possible..." Naruto stuttered, looking back and forth between Jiraiya and Colin. "Unless... you're using a genjutsu, like Obaa-chan does!"

"Genjutsu?" Colin turned and regarded the Hokage.

She was blushing, but hid it by putting her fists before her face in a contemplative pose. "Naruto," she regained the young Immortal's attention, "My genjutsu is unique to me alone. Even if I were to teach it to everyone in Konoha, with only a handful of exceptions, no one would be able to do it, even if they worked their whole lives to do just that. Not even Shizune can do it, and I've been teaching her since she was younger than you were when you first became a ninja. I first met Macleod-san when I was nine years old, 42 years ago. I've seen him three of the four times he's been to Konoha, counting this time. By that time, he was already old enough that my grandfather, the First Hokage spoke to him as you do to Kakashi, as a subordinate to one older and wiser than them. He is telling the truth, and you should believe him."

Naruto's eyes went wide. It was all too much to take in. Stumbling he sat down heavily in one of the nearby vacated chairs. He was holding his head, half-afraid it was about to blow up into itty bitty gory pieces. The elders in the room remained quiet, giving the youth the time he needed to process all he'd been told so far. They just hoped they wouldn't have to wait too long, as each of them were familiar, in their own way, with how slow Naruto could be sometimes.

Finally, he slumped down, tired of thinking, tired of not understanding. He sighed and got back to his feet, facing the two Sannin and his fellow Immortal with set and steady eyes.

"All right, say I believe you, and I'll still be needing the proof that all you say is true before I do anything else, but..." he paused, regarding each of them in turn before looking Colin in the eyes, "What is it exactly you want me to do with this information in the first place?"

"Well, for the most part, that is up to you," Tsunade answered first.

"As I've said," the Immortal repeated, "I am honor-bound to help you. I am here to train you in the ways of the Immortal. Basically, I'm here to teach you how to survive the Game. After that, I'm leaving. Beyond my lessons and training, what you do is your own choice. You still have free will, it's just you're going to be around a lot longer to exercise it, if you can survive."

"If you wanted to, Naruto, you could leave Konoha and go somewhere else, somewhere where you aren't hated, where you'll be appreciated as the hero that you are. You can even go chasing Sasuke if you wanted and there isn't a thing we could do to stop you," Jiraiya told him.

"You could cut off my head," Naruto reminded them.

"Something tells me," Colin laughed, "that with or without me teaching you, you'd find ways of making that difficult for whoever tried. Besides, you're not going anywhere until after I say you're ready. When I do, then you can go wherever you like, or you can tie yourself to this ninja village for as long as you live. Let me tell you this though; nothing lasts forever. Nothing."

Naruto looked down, frowning at the words. He used to just blurt out flat denials and affirmations that he would one day be Hokage. Now he'd found out that, if he survived, he'd live forever! It did not seem the right time for his usual denials.

"And if I still say that, no matter what, I will still be Hokage some day, then what?" he challenged his new Teacher. "Will you tell me it's a fool's dream, that I should just give up and let a temporary position be filled by someone _temporary_?!"

"No," Colin calmly denied. "You can be whatever you want to be, do whatever you want to do. If you don't mind people knowing your immortal, and I know how shinobi guard their secrets, even in their own Villages, then I imagine you could be Hokage for the next thousand years, provided both you and the Village survives that long."

Naruto's eyes snapped up, opening wide with excitement and joy, a grin spreading across his face.

"First question," Colin asked, "have you had any kenjutsu training?"

Thrown by the sudden change in subject, Naruto face-faulted, then sheepishly answered, "Uh, no, not really. Never had to use a sword before, just kunai."

"That's going to change. I'll give you your first sword, but it's just a training sword, until you can buy or make your own. I'm sure you have a lot of questions for these two, and me as well. We'll get started tomorrow, and I'll answer your questions for me then. Meet me at Training Area 12 at 7 tomorrow morning." Having said what he'd come to say, Colin stepped past Naruto and walked out of the room, leaving the blond genin in the room with the two Sannin.

"Is this for real?" Naruto hissed at them after they were alone.

"I don't know about the whole of it," Tsunade quietly admitted, "But I've known Colin Macleod of the Clan Macleod since I was a little girl. He really is that old, and yes, it's really him, not a new body or a different person with the same face and body like what Orochimaru does. He also provided... evidence to Jiraiya and me before we called all of you here, you especially. Immortals are real. Colin is an Immortal, and he claims that you are as well. He also told us that you two would have a... reaction to one another when you came close to the other."

Naruto started, then frowned.

"Is that what it was? A... _reaction_? I don't know what that was! It felt like my chakra was buzzing!"

"Naruto," Jiraiya interrupted his tirade, "I know that you're on information overload right now, but this changes things. Things that we need to talk with you about."

"Like what?" he snapped at them angrily. "That Immortals can't become Hokage?!"

The adults shared a glance, both sighing, whether in relief or exasperation it was difficult to say.

"That's for the future, we need to talk about the present," the Toad Sage insisted. "Bloodline theft is probably not really possible in your case, but that doesn't change the fact that Konoha now has a ninja that cannot die in it's ranks. A ninja that someone like Orochimaru is, if peripherally, aware of. Sasuke went to him willingly, but that was because Orochimaru wants only one thing from him. His body, in three years when he can perform his body-transfer jutsu again. But an Immortal?"

Naruto shivered along with Tsunade as the thought took hold in his mind. It was not a pleasant concept by any scope of the imagination.

"There's also some other information that, well that you need to be made aware of," Jiraiya muttered.

"Jiraiya!" Tsunade exclaimed.

"Things have changed!" he shouted back at her, confusing Naruto further. He'd never seen the two Sannin argue like this, not even when Jiraiya was trying to convince the angry drunk into taking the position of Hokage in the first place. They were scared, he realized. Scared for him, not _of_ him, but _for_ him. And that made him scared.

"What things?" he quietly asked them, sitting back down.

"Some of them, you can probably make a guess at," Jiraiya told him, rubbing his face in exhaustion. "There's an organization, named _Akatsuki _that is made up of S-Rank Missing Ninja. So far, they've mostly been gathering intelligence, resources, and money from various bounties. All for their primary purpose, which as near as I've been able to determine is to collect all of the bijuu."

"The Kyuubi," Naruto whispered, clenching his gut with a mix of rage and depression.

"And all the others," he added.

"Orochimaru _used_ to be a member of Akatsuki," Tsunade told him. "Jiraiya has not been able to figure out why or what caused the split, but after he left, that's when he created Oto, the Hidden Sound."

"So, we find this Akatsuki and we find Orochimaru and Sasuke?" Naruto asked, hope lighting his eyes.

"Doesn't quite work like that," Jiraiya corrected him. "Orochimaru left them, they didn't fire him, he left. You don't leave an organization like Akatsuki without burning a lot of bridges, you understand. If they knew where he was, they'd either hunt him down and kill him for betraying them, or leave him be so long as he stayed out of their business. It's doubtful that any of them would have information on Orochimaru's hideouts, let alone where he would keep his 'new body'."

"Something else that you must understand, Naruto," Tsunade insisted, "Each of these criminals are S-Ranked. That means that they're _at least_ as strong as Orochimaru ever could be. Probably more powerful as if they were weaker than him, that means they would be following him instead of hunting him down for leaving."

"Another thing, in case you're not scared yet, gaki," Jiraiya pointed out, "is that the few times that you've faced Orochimaru in combat, he was either severely weakened, or intentionally holding back. You've never seen him go all out before, remember that."

Naruto put his head on his knees, holding his fists to his temples as what they were telling him was pounded into his brain. They let him sit there for a couple of minutes, just letting him digest what he'd learned so far. Finally, he sat back up, his eyes raw with emotion, and asked, "How does me being Immortal now change things?"

"For one thing," Tsunade answered, "Colin is right. We have no control over you, never did really. You can do whatever you want and we can't stop you. The only people that know how to kill Immortals are myself, Jiraiya, Colin, and now you. No one else in all of Konoha even knows Immortals exist in the first place."

She got to her feet, walked around until she was standing in front of him. "You could go out, hunt down Orochimaru, bring Sasuke back to Konoha and hunt down each and every member of Akatsuki and then come back twenty years later and reintroduce yourself as a relative of the Fourth Hokage, or the Senju Clan or just some wandering ninja wanting to settle down and a few years of service after that become the Hokage then. You could walk out those doors right now and never set foot in Konoha for the rest of eternity if you wanted to, and we can't stop you."

"So, we've decided that what's changed is you," Jiraiya picked up where she left off. "And how we handle dealing with you."

"How you _handle_ _**dealing**_ with me?" he repeated, a bit of a growl in his voice.

"Oh come on gaki, you know you're still just a kid, even if you don't look it anymore," Jiraiya teased, a bit of his usual personality coming through. "Do you see anyone else shouting at Tsunade most of the time? She's the Hokage for crying out loud! And while I am the world's greatest super pervert, and must deal with the consequences of my research sometimes. Do you think _that I let just __**anyone get AWAY WITH CALLING ME *ERO-SENNIN*!!**_"

Naruto winced, then shrugged, looking up at them with his wide, innocent blue eyes.

"So instead of just dealing with it because you're just a gaki that doesn't know any better, and because we like you," Jiraiya was saying.

"But also because we have more experience, Naruto," Tsunade interrupted. "We know how the world works and what a person is capable of and what they're not capable of. So in the past, we've hidden things from you, told you part of the whole story, the part that you needed to hear."

"Or just the parts that we knew at the time," Jiraiya continued. "We've decided to change that."

"Complete honesty," Tsunade added.

Naruto nodded, his brain still overloaded, but he understood what they were saying. Normally he would have gotten all full of righteous anger and started shouting at them for not trusting him and lying to him and stuff. He still might have reacted that way only as long as a week ago. But that was before his fight with Sasuke, and several cold, hard truths were revealed to him. He couldn't take what they were offering, not just yet. He needed time to understand what this all meant and figure out what he was going to do.

"I... I need time to think about this. All of this. Before I go, though... is there anything else that I really need to know?" he asked them, getting to his feet. They exchanged another look.

Jiraiya spoke. "I was going to offer this beforehand either way. Before we knew you were an Immortal, but... I'm going to take you on a training journey, just you and me. If you want to go. I wouldn't be the first Sannin to leave Konoha with an apprentice to train, you know."

"Wow! Really! That's Awesome!" Naruto exclaimed, his excitement and child-like glee returning at the mere mention of training. Particularly since the last bit of training he'd gotten from the Sannin was for the Rasengan! "Wait, so... how does me being Immortal change that?"

"It doesn't, not really, we'll still go," Jiraiya was quick to assure him. "But because of this incident, a lot of people are going to make a lot of noise if I suddenly leave with a genin, especially with all that's happened recently. So, let's make a deal!"

"What kind of deal?" Naruto asked, suspicious.

"If you make chuunin in the next Chuunin Exams, we'll go on a two and a half year training journey," Jiraiya told him. "If you don't," he shrugged, "Well, then you'll have to earn the rank the hard way. By a field promotion, which is a _lot_ harder to get than passing the Chuunin Exams."

Naruto gulped, then set his eyes and grinned wide.

"All right then! I'll do it! I'll pass the next Chuunin Exams with flying colors and you're still gonna train me no matter what! Uh... when are the next Chuunin Exams?" he suddenly faltered.

The Sannin both face-faulted.

It was good to see becoming Immortal hadn't changed their friend that much.

TBC...


	30. Missing Hokage: Nii

Title:The Missing Hokage : Nii

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:Naruto is published by Shounen Jump Magazine, and the creator doesn't know what to do with his own creation so instead of hiring Ghost Writers to make it more interesting, he "focuses" on other characters that nobody cares about. This story is in response to Perfect Lionheart's "Missing Hokage" challenge.

Summary:Naruto, Hinata, Tsunade, Shizune, and the last Loyal Uchiha, Sasuke are gone. Danzo expects to become Hokage, but instead Jiraiya accepts the position. After he takes the job, he starts making changes...

Nii: Changes

"What do you mean they're gone?!!" Homura shouted out loud.

The masked ANBU did not visibly flinch, and thankfully the mask hid the person's wince at the shrill tone. The ANBU waited just a second so as to control their voice before answering in a perfectly neutral tone.

"Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Hyuuga Hinata are no longer in their hospital rooms. Our search has conclusively confirmed that neither are any of them in the Village. Or any of the outlying training areas. There is also evidence to support that they have in fact left, and may even have been taken, but they are clearly not hiding anywhere in the Village."

"Tsunade's behind this, I just know it," Koharu muttered out loud.

"The Fifth Hokage has stepped down from her position," the ANBU informed the three Elders. They turned and glared at the ANBU, who sheepishly admitted, "I thought you knew. There was a memo sent out..."

"When?" Danzo quietly demanded.

"Last night, just after midnight," the ANBU smugly replied. "The Sixth Hokage has called a Council Meeting to discuss the change in government and several new laws that ANBU will be enforcing by the end of today's work day. He specifically requested you three attend." The ANBU then flashed away.

They looked each other square in the eye and grunted out what they were all thinking. "Jiraiya."

"It's now been three months as of today," Homura growled. "We couldn't even convene to witness the demon's exile. So we just assumed that he was still being held in his hospital room on Tsunade's authority."

"I had my... friends," Danzo told them, referring to his ROOT agents, "try and gain access the day he was to be exiled. ANBU stopped them. Given the presence of ANBU guarding both rooms for the Uchiha and Uzumaki, it was assumed that they were both still present. This was the first opportunity I've had to meet with both of you."

"And now that there's a new Hokage, apparently," Koharu snarled, "ANBU are no longer as busy as they've been for the past month. They finally completed the mission I asked them to perform over a month ago! This is outrageous!"

"Agreed," the other two nodded.

"Well then," Danzo muttered dourly, "Let's not keep our new Hokage waiting, shall we?"

All three Elders quickly made their way to the Council Chambers.

_Hokage Tower_

_Council Chambers_

_Nine Weeks After Team Hokage Left_

"I now hereby call this Council meeting to order!" Jiraiya slammed his gavel down on the desk. He was wearing the robes of a Kage along with a brand new Hokage Hat. It had red and gold trimming and cost a surprising amount of money from the Council's purse.

"What is the meaning of this?" Danzo questioned the moment he stepped through the door with the other two Elders, literally two seconds before they were sealed shut by ANBU.

"Ah good," Jiraiya grinned perversely, "You three made it. And here I was thinking you'd miss out on the mandatory Council meeting I called. As of last night, shortly before midnight, it has been exactly three months to the day since this Council's last meeting. Unfortunately, about six hours after that last meeting ended, Tsunade left the Village and took all her apprentices, and her apprentice's students with her when she left. As you can see from the folders before you, there are copies of all the laws, mandates, and other pieces of legislature that she enacted before leaving her post of Hokage. She also named me, the Great Jiraiya, as Sixth Hokage of Konoha. As I said, what you have before you are copies. The actual documents are already sealed away, and have been signed by the Fire Lord."

"Now then," Jiraiya gave them all another perverse grin, enjoying the looks on the majority of the Council member's faces as realization swept through them, "It is customary that the newly instated Hokage can choose to change, add, or remove certain laws created by previous Hokages in his first day of office. After that, he must get the full approval of the Council and the Fire Lord to change anything already established."

Faces dropped and the Elders all scowled, but every one of them were suddenly afraid with what they knew to be coming next.

"As it just so happens, in anticipation for this day, I've spent the last nine weeks researching, ratifying, and writing up all the new laws I want to introduce, change, and the old laws that I want to get rid of. Starting with the Third Hokage's laws regarding Uzumaki Naruto. Turns out Uzumaki is his middle name actually. I, Jiraiya, Sixth Hokage of Konoha, do hereby declare that the law pertaining to keeping Uzumaki Naruto's true identity a secret, punishable by death, now null and void. Nothing to be done about the past, but seeing as how Naruto's been exiled from the Village, no point in it now, right?"

Quite a few, Danzo in particular, smiled and nodded along, no one really raising a fuss. After all, telling them that they'd exiled the 'demon' would just make the Council even more popular with the public.

"Oh, and here's something the Council probably didn't know," Jiraiya pulled out a birth certificate. "Turns out Naruto is really _Namikaze_ Uzumaki Naruto. Huh, go figure. The Council of Konoha just exiled the Fourth Hokage's only son."

The phrase, you could hear a pin drop, is often said, but very few know what it sounds like. Yet it was very appropriate as the Council Chambers became very nervously quiet all of a sudden.

"And the real kicker? His mother was Uzumaki Kushina, the Fourth Hokage's independent wife, who also was one of our most popular, and arguably most powerful ninja ambassadors. She almost singlehandedly went around to all of the Five Great Nations and all of our current allies and former enemies and stopped the Third Great Shinobi War. And given the fact that Naruto, in his less than one year time as a ninja, freed Nami no Kuni from a tyrant, mastered the Rasengan in less than a month, singlehandedly stopped the Ichibi of Suna from destroying Konoha, summoned the Toad Boss before he was 13, protected, saved, and helped establish the Princess and current ruler of Yuki no Kuni, helped resolve an ongoing conflict between the political factions in Cha no Kuni, helped protect the Water of Heroes in Takigakure, defeated no less than _SIX_ A-Rank nukenin, and also saved more lives than _anyone_ on this Council can lay claim to just by continuing to live by holding back the Kyuubi _every SINGLE DAY OF HIS __**LIFE**_!! I would say that he's pretty close to surpassing _both_ of his parents, wouldn't you?"

If the silence of before was 'pin drop', then this was so quiet you could hear a _fly_ _rub its wings_!

Many of the Council now hung their head in shame, while those that had not been in the majority glared angrily at their fellow Council Members. Only three were the exception. Danzo, of course, and the two Elders by his side, who both bore looks of barely contained rage. Jiraiya felt there was more going on here than anyone had realized just yet.

"Anyway, that's actually the only 'old law' that's getting thrown out entirely. There are some other 'old laws' that I'm going to be changing around, but not everything. Good thing Tsunade left me the keys to her office, otherwise I never would have gotten all this paperwork done in time for today!" Jiraiya laughed.

"Now, let's see here, ah! Number one, my absolute favorite, by the way," he gave a grin to all the male members of the Council, "Coed Hot Springs!" Most of the Council stared, some groaned, but the female members growled threateningly.

Jiraiya quickly moved to assuage their threat. "Now, there's this little stipulation, unfortunately, that when introducing new laws, it has to be for a specific reason. In recent months, Konoha has taken severe losses, and even before that, there was the Kyuubi attack that took out almost half our forces, and then the Uchiha Massacre, taking out an entire clan. So, about ninety percent of the laws I've created for today, and the immediate future, is for the following reason. We need to strengthen our forces and regain our losses. And so in efforts of improving the birthrate and refilling future ranks of our ninja, all hot springs and public baths will now be coed, sponsoring both male and female in the same side. I actually already assigned several teams of chuunin to go and make the necessary modifications to all such places in Konoha."

"Moving on," Jiraiya grinned as the Council groaned.

"I protest!" Danzo protested.

"You can't," another Council member told him flatly. "He's right about the newly appointed Hokage being able to do practically whatever they want in the first day. If he's got the paperwork already finished, there is nothing we can do about it."

"See," Jiraiya then stuck his tongue out at Danzo. "Besides, this meeting is more for your benefit. After all, these laws _are_ going into effect. Wouldn't you rather know about them ahead of time, rather than risk breaking them in the future and suffer the consequences?"

Most of the Council gulped nervously. They almost wished Tsunade was back and that they'd never banished the demon brat now!

"Next up," the new Hokage continued, "All ninja must go in for weekly physicals and must maintain the exacting physical standards for Konoha ninja of their respective rank. The _exceptions_ being any ninja on a long term mission outside of the village at the time of their regularly scheduled physical. This applies to all _active_ ninja of Konoha. Any inactive, retired, or reserve ninja have to come in for their exams once a year. And just to be fair, I'm volunteering to go in weekly same as everyone else."

Privately, in his own mind, Jiraiya perversely added, _'And I'm also the one in charge of the scheduling, so I'll just make sure I'm there the same day all of the kunoichi of the village are coming in! Heh heh heh heh!'_

Clearing his throat, he continued, "In efforts of protecting our current ninja, I've created several new uniforms that I am making mandatory for all active ninja. Kunoichi must wear fishnet, skintight, ninja armor and other protection at all times when on duty. As Anko-chan here has graciously deemed to model for us."

The purple-haired Special Jounin stepped down to the middle of the Council Chambers, turning this way and that as she modeled her tightly packed, voluptuous body, clad only in a full-body fishnet ninja armor, her hitai-ate across her forehead, shoulder pads, forearm bracers, equipment belt across her waist and weapon pouches strapped across her thighs and standard ninja sandal boots. Some of the women scowled dangerously, and more than one man was holding already-red-tissues to their noses. At least before now Anko had held some modesty with a skirt and trench coat. This was... _scandalous_!

"Likewise," Jiraiya continued and gestured for Iruka to step in, "Shinobi must wear flack jackets, reinforced armored, tight, leather pants and fishnet ninja armor when on duty."

The situation was suddenly reversed as Iruka modeled the male uniform, displaying his athletic and muscle-toned body for all to see. The jacket seemed to have been modified so that it was more an enhancement to Iruka's barrel chest, rather than covering his figure. Likewise the pants seemed to mold to his legs and muscles rather than hang loose and free as before. Now it was the ladies turn to hold tissues while the men scowled, though more in embarrassment for having to wear that sort of thing.

"When not on duty, our ninja will identify themselves with the following uniforms," Jiraiya grinned and Anko practically cheered, and turned to watch as their fellow models walked in. Every jaw on the Council dropped in shock, and a number of them had simultaneous heart attacks.

Kurenai and Asuma both entered, each blushing equally and asking themselves over and over again how they'd gotten themselves roped into this mess! She was actually wearing nothing more than her hitai-ate, her usual heeled sandals, and a red halter bikini top with matching hot pants. Asuma actually had on less as he just wore his hitai-ate, his usual sandals and even tighter pants/shorts that didn't go lower, or higher than his waist, and was a matching red to Kurenai's outfit.

"Red for jounin, purple for special jounin, blue for chuunin, and yellow for genin," Jiraiya proudly announced. "ANBU will be setting the example, but since they'll be off duty any time you'll see them like this, they'll just wear the corresponding rank color. Oh, before I forget, remember me mentioning those consequences for breaking these new laws?"

He picked up a sheet of paper from his desk and began to read from it, "Failure to comply with these new uniform changes will come with two, optional, punishments and only a single escalation. I'm certainly not the Second Hokage, so I'm not going to sentence people to death just for disagreeing with me," he added off-script. "Option 1 is to do nothing but D-Rank missions, no matter what rank, for one week. Easy, right?"

Most of the Council frowned, as nobody but rookie genin ever did D-Ranks anymore if they could help it, and most jounin would outright refuse to go anywhere _near_ a D-Rank mission again for the rest of their careers! Just with that, Jiraiya guaranteed either absolute compliance, or an immediate choice of the second option, which promised to be worse than the first.

"Option 2 is to walk around completely naked, but still able do C and above missions and wear on-duty attire during those missions. This will be _enforced_ by ANBU, myself, and I'm sure any and all ninja that agree to the uniform changes," Jiraiya smiled unpleasantly at the entire Council.

"The Escalation only happens when one does not comply with the uniform changes and either chooses neither punishment options, or is a repeat offender, or outright refuses to comply no matter what. The escalation is to be left 'spread eagle' in front of the Hokage tower, completely naked for one day, from sun up to sun down. And as I said, this will be enforced by ANBU."

"Any questions? Comments?" Jiraiya looked around, a giddy expression on his face. "No then? Thank you for your time, Anko-chan, Kurenai-chan, Iruka-kun, Asuma-kun. You may go and help distribute the uniforms now."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," they four acknowledged, then left.

"Now, about the Ninja Academy," Jiraiya abruptly changed the pace. "Normally the Hokage and the governing Council are not allowed to interfere in the day-to-day happenings there and have little say on what is taught or done to the students while in attendance. However, it would seem that that changed sometime over the past twelve years or so, as I noticed a number of laws and stipulations passed by this Council, without the acting authority of the Hokage, that have been passed in regards to Konoha's ninja Academy."

"So!" he proudly announced. "That's why I've decided to change that around. It is now written, with the _only_ way to countermand it is if the next Hokage changes it, or with the _full vote_ of the Council, the acting Hokage, and the written authorization of the Fire Lord, that the only person that can change any aspect of the Ninja Academy at all is the Hokage himself. If any of the teachers, students... or Council Members want a particular law or rule changed, they must come to the Hokage to do so."

"First change; all children over the age of 6 that live within Konoha's borders are now required for mandatory attendance to the Konoha Ninja Academy. Any individual under the age of 14, even if they flunked the Academy Exam three times or more, must attend the Academy for remedial courses or standard attendance. Any chuunin, not on an active long term mission, must report to the Academy to teach, either for standard classes, or the remedial classes that are being established as we speak."

"While we're on the subject of the Academy Roster, as Hokage under this new law, I appoint Umino Iruka as Headmaster of the Ninja Academy. I also stipulate that, if he so desires, he may step in to teach a class, or classes as he sees fit, as well as assign or reassign those teaching the classes. Only the Hokage may 'fire' or stop anyone from teaching at the Academy. Also, genin that have not yet passed the Chuunin Exam, but have been active ninja for more than six months, are also required to teach at the Academy, as assistants to the chuunin teaching there full time. Last thing on the Academy, for the moment, this is now required reading material for the graduating, and remedial classes at the Academy." He was holding up a copy of _Icha Icha Paradise_. "I took the liberty of drawing from Council funds to purchase the books for the Academy."

Everyone in the room, with few exceptions, paled dramatically at this news. The only exception was Danzo, who merely tightened his fist, and one or two women who were turning red over this 'outrage' and the book being accessible to their children.

"Last few things and then we'll call it a day, and to give all of you time to prepare, as all of these laws _will_ go into effect by tomorrow. Well, technically, they'll be in effect by the end of today's workday, but I won't start having ANBU enforce them until tomorrow, OK?" Jiraiya gave them a false smile.

"It was established by the Third Hokage that the Council may have equal say in what laws are passed and how they are enforced," he said. "That's now been changed. The Third Hokage has the right to veto, or approve any laws the Council puts forth, and after this day, the Council can only make changes to any law the Hokage proposes and enacts. You cannot outright veto or deny the law, nor can you decide how it is enforced or punished. I agree with the Old Man that the Council itself is still needed in order to maintain peace, but quite apparently, as your recent decisions have shown, you're not ready to be completely equal to the Hokage. Believe it or not, this one was the one that took the longest to get through with all the paperwork. Your power has now had the legs taken out from under it and you'll only get more from the Hokage and no one else. Do not forget that."

"The IT, Interrogation/Torture Division of ANBU are now answerable only to the Hokage, and anyone in possession of information that is obtained or retrieved from this division will be considered a spy and brought up on treason charges, with the acting Hokage acting as judge and jury, immediate execution is authorized. If the Hokage is not present when the spy is determined, then a full, public trial shall be held."

"And finally, last thing," he gives them all a really perverted grin, "I've been hearing some strange stuff during my time as Konoha's spymaster, and during my preparations for my turn at the hat here, I came across some, well the only delicate way to put it is, errors in the books. So I've ordered an audit on all holdings, of both Konoha and all Clans, and even civilians with a bank account. The Fire Lord's personal accountant will be here at the end of the week. That is all. The Council Meeting is hereby adjourned until I, the Sixth Hokage of Konoha, call for another one. Maybe in another three months or so." With that, he slammed his gavel down on the bench so hard that the top part of the bench and the gavel itself broke apart.

In his wake, Jiraiya left a very troubled, and stunned-quiet Council. The ANBU quickly moved in to remind them that until the Hokage called for another meeting, if any of them were found meeting in large enough numbers that they would be held on treasonable accounts. They all quickly dispersed after that.

_Meanwhile..._

"RUN!" Naruto screamed. "Run, run, run, run, run, run! RUN!"

"We're running, we're running!" Sasuke screamed back at him.

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata cried, pointing ahead, "Look out!"

"Oh dattebayyyooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo—*!" he cried as he fell through the trap door which his running companions simply leaped over.

"Great," Sasuke cursed, "Now we've got to go back down to the dungeons."

"Ano," Hinata gestured at the tentacle-filled corridor ahead of them, "I-I d-don't think that's going to be the hard p-part."

"Any luck on finding that damn scroll?" Sasuke shouted, slicing away at the appendages with kunai and just about anything else sharp that he had handy. This had to be the one mission that he left the _Ichibu Raijin,_ the damaged copy of the original that he'd fought against in Cha no Kuni against the traitor Konoha-nin Aoi. Apparently it had been repaired after Naruto broke it and returned it to Konoha, and Tsunade had grabbed it along with the True Raijin. Naruto got that one while Sasuke got to claim the copy.

He just really wished he had it right then!

All of a sudden, the tentacles all stopped and there was this unstoppable force pulling them all in a single direction, though to them it felt like every direction all at once. The next thing Sasuke and Hinata knew, they were being _spit out_ of the castle they'd infiltrated, alongside the diplomatic party from Mitsu no Kuni and Naruto himself, who just so happened to be sporting a new cut on his hand and a large, very old scroll in the other. Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Figures," he scoffed, "We do all the fighting, and he completes the objective. Only difference from before is that he actually does it on purpose now."

Hinata just giggled and raced over to Naruto to congratulate him on getting the Lizard Summoning Contract. Sasuke just sighed and picked himself up off the ground before going to help the dignitaries to their feet. Damned dobe, hogging all the action and leaving him with the credit. If he could switch places with the blond, he'd do it in an instant.

"About time you finished up in there," a new voice called from the edge of the 'bridge' leading up to the castle, which suddenly and violently exploded in a cloud of jutsu smoke as the summon finally returned to where it came from.

Sasuke, Naruto and Hinata turned to face this new person and saw a young man, only a couple years older than them at the most, still in his teens, with dark brown hair, weathered skin, and bright blue eyes. He was wearing a mishmash of clothing styles, and if you weren't careful they would change in an eyeblink.

"Heh heh heh," Naruto chuckled, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Sorry about that Shi! It was a lot tougher than I thought, even knowing it was a summon thanks to Hinata's Byakugan! Took forever to find that scroll you said would be there."

"Hai, Kaito-san," Hinata bowed to the teen, and remarked, "It was very difficult to convince the summon that we were not intruders. I-it, it was more luck that N-Naruto-kun was able to find the scroll in time. At least we have rescued the princess," she bowed again.

Kaito Shi grinned at them, showing off bright white teeth, thankfully not as damaging as Maito Gai and Rock Lee when they grinned at people. Though it did seem to have some effect on the Princess from Mitsu no Kuni, seeing how she blushed and giggled suddenly.

"Let's get them out of here," Shi suggested. "We're supposed to meet up with Tsunade and Shizune in Tori no Kuni to investigate those disappearances in just a few days."

Naruto shivered. "Isn't that the one where they think it's a g-g-g-g-h-gh-ghost...?"

Shi chuckled and nodded. "Why do you think we're skipping around all over the place? It's to get you over that damn irrational fear of spirits and ghosts. You'd think you were scared with ghost stories as a kid."

"I was," Naruto grumbled.

"Who told them to you?" Shi questioned.

"Older kids and some adults. I usually listened in when they didn't know I was there," Naruto said.

"Well, real spirits and ghosts rarely bother with haunting the living. Usually they just wallow in self-guilt or whatever and the haunting is a side-effect. Most spirits however, you'll find doing something constructive, like helping things to grow, protecting something new from negative influences, and maintaining the balance of the world in one way or another."

"And how would you know that, _Kaito-san_?" Sasuke growled at the teen.

"I do believe we've had that conversation before, Sasuke," Shi answered, not bothering to look back.

"Why do we put up with this guy again?" Sasuke asked his two companions, and arguably his only real friends in the world.

"Aw, give him a break, Teme," Naruto waved off the comments, "He's an OK guy. And he's even saved your life a couple of times. Plus, he helped us out that first time we met him, remember?"

"Hard to forget," the second to last Uchiha grumbled in annoyance.

_Two and a Half Months Ago_

"You really shouldn't be here," the teenager in a multitude of styles warned the equally eclectic group of ninja following Rourusuke, one of the villagers which they were walking towards.

"And who might you be to say so?" Tsunade challenged the teen, using her considerable height over the teen and crossing her arms under assets to further intimidate him.

"Kaito Shi," he bowed his head in greeting. "This is uncomfortably close to Konoha, wouldn't you agree, Fifth-sama?"

Most of the group flinched, while their guide just looked confused.

"See that curry restaurant over there," the teen pointed down the mountain path they'd climbed. "Maito Gai and Rock Lee pass that place every single day in their morning runs. I'm just saying you might want to be careful. But I certainly can't make you give up on helping these people. They certainly need it."

"Who _are_ you?" Tsunade growled, picking the kid up by his collar. Only for him to vanish before she'd gotten a real grip on him. He reappeared next to Naruto.

"My name is Kaito Shi," he grinned, addressing the entire group. "You may call me Shi, if you like. And let's just say that I'm... interested in how things turn out. I'm not with Konoha. Or any of the Hidden Villages really. You might say I'm like a nukenin, but since I never really belonged to a Village in the first place, that's not entirely accurate. Suffice to say, I'm not your enemy and I'd like to be your friend, but I'm not that presumptuous. For now though..." Shi looked up the mountain path, "... you lot have a funeral to crash."

He then vanished and did not reappear.

"What was that about?" Sasuke wanted to know.

"I'm not sure," Tsunade said cautiously. "But I have a feeling we're going to find out sooner rather than later. Let's go. If what Rourusuke has told us is true, we don't have a lot of time to save these people!"

"Then let's go!" Naruto cried, charging ahead.

"Baka!" Sasuke cursed, chasing after the short blond.

Tsunade flashed ahead and grabbed the boy by the shoulder. "Wait, Naruto," she cautioned. "Something that you should have learned by now is that patience is more important that flashy entrances when saving the day. Hinata, you hang back and use the Byakugan to judge the threat. Sasuke, you go with Shizune, Naruto with me. Use the radio to detail the enemy's position, Hinata. Now spread out, and don't get caught!"

"Hai!" Team Hokage snapped to attention and raced to comply.

They got there just as the grave was finished being covered with dirt and all the villains were walking off to gloat and the villagers went back to cowering. Tsunade barely managed to keep Naruto back from charging in with an army of shadow clones and attack. With some quick digging though, and Hinata's Byakugan, they quickly saved the buried villager before he died and returned him to their hiding spot in the mountains.

Unfortunately, it was only a short amount of time before the leader came back and they had a fight on their hands. At Tsunade's prompting, they set up for several ambush attacks, based on Hinata's input from the use of her Byakugan. Unfortunately, something that was highly unexpected was for the man to have some ability that seemed to trick the Byakugan into seeing people where there were really none.

It took a couple of false attacks and false warnings before Hinata began to piece it together from the clues, and by then all of the bandits, calling themselves the Kurosuki Family, were involved and fighting, along with Raiga, one of the former Seven Swordsmen of the Mist.

After some intense fighting, Hinata tracked the source of the 'interference' to the bundle on Raiga's back, who was apparently receiving input on their own locations from the same bundle. Sasuke being the nearest after she discovered this fact, acted prematurely and tried to get the bundle away from the lightning-using Kiri nukenin.

Even Tsunade was shocked at the genuine grief Raiga displayed just at being separated from what they soon discovered was a boy name Ranmaru. Naruto, on the other hand, became almost incensed at what he perceived was a version of slavery that he'd seen before in Haku to Zabuza, and drove Raiga off a cliff where he fell and was buried by a rock slide.

When the dust was settled, however, and the Kurosuki Family permanently disbanded, Ranmaru explained his past and how Raiga had actually saved him from a life of loneliness and solitude and took him to see the world. Then, Ranmaru snuck away to try and revive Raiga using his unique powers.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," a voice said from just behind the small, young boy.

Ranmaru jumped and turned to see who had spoken. He saw a young man, mid-teens, brown hair, blue eyes, and a mishmash style of clothes.

"Who-who are you?" Ranmaru stuttered.

The older boy shrugged, then grinned and stepped forward. "Tell you what," he said instead, "if you go and get Tsunade, I'm fairly certain she can revive your friend here. He's still alive, by the way. Just knocked out and probably severely injured. Never fun being buried alive..."

Ranmaru stared, then asked, "Why should I trust you? What if you kill him while I'm gone? I won't let you!" the boy cried out.

"My name is Kaito Shi," the teen told him, a strange look in his eyes, "and I give you my word that when you get back here, your friend will be unburied and still alive. Whether he remains alive depends on what Tsunade can do for him. She is the greatest Medic-nin in the world, after all."

Ranmaru blinked, frowning as he thought it over, then turned and ran back to Team Hokage's camp.

When Ranmaru came back with Tsunade and everyone else, Raiga was unburied, laying on a cloth tarp next to the mound of stones, still alive. Shi was no where to be seen.

_Present_

"Yeah, it's really annoying how he does that vanishing and appearing out of thin air trick," Naruto commented.

"Still," Hinata added, "Because of him stopping Ranmaru-kun from giving his power to Raiga, we managed to avoid a fight, and thanks to Tsunade successfully reviving him, Raiga now owes us a debt of honor. Which he began with letting Ranmaru-kun go his separate way and throwing away his swords."

"Then there was the time that..." Naruto started to say, but Sasuke interrupted him.

"Fine, fine, FINE!" the Uchiha exclaimed, throwing up his arms in frustration. "I'll back off. I just don't trust him. He's up to something. I don't know what, just... something."

Naruto just shrugged and walked a little faster, moving closer to Hinata.

"He's right though," Shi said from right between the trio of chuunin, startling all of them. "I am up to something. Nothing bad, but be honest. Everybody is up to _something_. It's whether it's good, bad, dishonest, or noble that makes the difference."

"So what are you up to?" Sasuke demanded haughtily.

"Annoying you," Shi grinned back at the Uchiha.

"Why you...!" Sasuke rolled up his sleeves and made like he was about to charge.

"Sasuke!" Naruto snapped, frowning.

The black-haired, black-eyed ninja backed down immediately, though he didn't look happy about it.

Turning to Shi, Naruto's eyes became much more serious as he asked, "Shi, if you could please tell us, WHAT THE HECK DID YOU MEAN BY THAT?!!" Naruto shouted in the teen's ear.

Wincing in pain and rubbing his ears to get his hearing back, Shi grumbled and finally answered, "Fine! Fine. While I haven't _technically_ been following your group... I've kind of been following Naruto ever since he was exiled."

"I knew it! You're up to something!" Sasuke accused him.

"I do believe we've covered that," Shi sighed, rolling his eyes. "The _reason_ I've been following Naruto was, well to put it quite simply, Naruto, you're not supposed to have been exiled."

"You mean I was supposed to be executed instead?!" Naruto overreacted.

"No!" Shi quickly corrected. "No, actually, you were supposed to stay in Konoha and be the first ever genin that one day eventually became Hokage, without attaining any other ranks in between."

"Really?" Naruto asked, stars in his eyes. Until he actually thought over what he'd just been told. "Hey! Wait a minute here! You mean I _never_ get promoted until becoming Hokage!!"

Shi shrugged, while behind them, Hinata and Sasuke both were slapping their foreheads in exasperation.

"Well, that _used_ to be your destiny. But something royally screwed that up, and I'm just trying to figure out what, and how to keep things from getting worse," the teen replied. "I have a... unique ability. Not necessarily a bloodline limit like what Hinata and Sasuke here have with their doujutsu. I can... divine the future. Sometimes through writing, sometimes through drawing or painting, sometimes through dreams or visions. Once, I even met myself, and he said he was from the future. Still, it kind of gets your attention when one day I'm writing a biography of the only ever genin-made-Hokage, and the next I'm painting graffiti detailing a war that will destroy the entire world."

All three ninja stopped cold at this pronouncement. They stared at their traveling companion and two of them were quite impatient about it, while the third had bulging veins around her eyes as an intimidation tactic.

"You really think I would follow _Naruto_, a next-to-no-name genin that got exiled from his home village, something that happens more often than you might think, all around the Elemental Nations if it were anything less than something like that?" he challenged them with a steady stare.

"Look," he sighed, "I'm still trying to sort it all out myself. All I know is that after you guys left Konoha, I started drawing, painting and writing about specific places and people. These same places and people, are pretty much the missions your team has been doing since Naruto was exiled. It's also why I'm rather insistent that you get to Tori no Kuni and join up with Tsunade and Shizune. Something... bad _could_ happen if you're not there Naruto. I don't know exactly what, like I said it's not ever _really_ exact, but..."

"Ano... Kaito-san, are you a... a prophet?" Hinata asked quietly.

Shi paused, then shrugged.

"Honestly, I couldn't begin to tell you. All I do know, is that anytime I try to do something creative, like drawing, painting, writing a poem or a story, sometimes even just dream... it all comes true. Four months ago, I was drawing paintings of the Hokage Monument in Konoha with seven faces on it. Three months ago, I'm drawing the same mountain, except it's been blown apart and fire is burning in the background and there's a black sky overhead. Two months ago, after I met you for the first time, I drew the monument, whole, with four and two half-faces. The Four that are already there, half of Tsunade's face, and half of another guys face that is not Naruto. By meeting you, I changed the future. I can only assume that if I keep hanging around you guys, I can change it some more. Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen, but I'm just going with what I know."

He turned and started off in the direction to their rendezvous point with Tsunade, the Konoha exiles following mutely along behind.

"You know anything about me?" Sasuke asked after a few minutes silence.

"Yeah, you were supposed to get away and be Orochimaru's plaything for the next three years while Naruto spent all his time worrying about getting you back to Konoha and went on a training journey with Jiraiya of the Sannin," Shi snapped testily. "As you can see from your current circumstances, that didn't happen."

"Ano..."

"Stayed in Konoha with Team Eight while Naruto went on his training journey," he answered without even having to be asked. Hinata nodded and sighed.

"How about lately?" Naruto asked as they walked along. "Done much... divining the future?"

Shi stared at the blond shinobi for a couple seconds, analyzing him with his eyes, trying to see if the boy really believed him, or was just making fun. Seeing the wide, innocent blue eyes staring back at him with earnest curiosity, Shi decided to believe it was the former.

"Some," he said. "Haven't had much time for writing, what with having to travel at least as much as you lot are, but I've drawn doodles and sketches here and there. Done bits of graffiti. I don't have anything on Konoha, but... I'm starting to see a different village. It's not one easily recognized, and believe me I've been asking around. One thing I can say for certain, is whatever or wherever this mystery village is, Naruto, you are going to be it's leader, and Sasuke and Hinata, you are both there with him."

Sasuke frowned, then asked, "In what capacity?"

Shi grinned in return, then pulled out a folded piece of parchment and handed it to Sasuke. Glaring suspiciously, the Uchiha slowly opened the folded paper and looked at it. He stared, wide-eyed and almost dropped it in shock.

"Sasuke-san?" Hinata called, concerned.

"Huh? What is it Sasuke?" Naruto asked.

Mutely, their fellow shinobi merely handed over the picture, as that was exactly what it was. They quietly accepted it and held it between them so they could both look at it together.

The drawing was a pencil sketch, but very well done with fine detail. It was simply a portrait sketch of seven people, three in prominence at the front, and the others either paired off or by themselves. Sasuke was seen in the upper left corner in a very... unique uniform, holding a nodachi at his side, and he was smiling. In the upper right hand corner was Shi, dressed like a ninja, though he was covering his hitai-ate, and he was also smiling. At the bottom was a couple, who were quite obviously a couple, a man and a woman. They looked very familiar, but not nearly as familiar as the ones in the center.

In the center, the very focus of the drawing one might assume, were three individuals. On the left was a much older Naruto and on the right a Hinata about the same age, around twenty-five to thirty they would guess. They were standing very close together, smiling so happily it was hard not to grin just seeing them like that. Between them, they held a young child, maybe as young as one or as much as three years old.

"What's this mean?" Naruto asked, his throat suddenly dry.

"Apparently," Shi mercilessly answered, giving him a shark's toothy grin, "sometime in the next ten years, you and Hinata get married and have a child. At least as of lunch time today, when I drew that. For all I know, this conversation has already changed the future to something completely different. Whether it's a good future or a bad one we'll want to avoid," he shrugged, "We'll just have to see. But for now, I wrote a poem before going to bed last night, before I found you guys today. We _really_ need to meet up with Tsunade and Shizune. Like, before the end of the day. Before sunset would be better."

"All right!" Naruto stepped forward, suddenly pumped up. "Then I guess it's time to test out my new summons! The Toads are good for fighting and swimming and freshwater, but lizards move really fast, right?"

"Hai, Naruto-kun," Hinata dutifully replied, "They also have other uses, according to rumor. Any four-legged, tailed reptile falls under the Lizard Contract that you signed, so you could summon anything from alligators and crocodiles, to chameleons, geckos, iguanas, and even anoles and salamanders."

"OK, here goes!" Naruto announced as he bit his thumb to draw blood and then flashed through the seals and cried out while focusing chakra, "_Eki Kuchiyose no jutsu _(Lizard Summoning Technique)!"

_Konoha_

_Training Area 7_

_One Week Later_

"YOU'RE LATE!!" Sakura screamed as Kakashi slowly walked up to her, porn in hand.

"Hm?" he looked up, almost surprised to see her standing on the bridge in his way. "Sakura? What are you doing here?"

"I'm here for training, _Sensei_!" the pink-haired banshee growled, clenching her fist. Since Naruto had vanished, she'd had very little in ways of venting her ever-mounting frustrations.

Kakashi blinked at his sole remaining student and solemnly put his orange cover book away.

"Sakura, did I tell you, at all, in the past week to meet me for training?" he asked her, quite serious.

Sakura blinked, her anger vanishing like the morning mist. "Uh... well, no, not really. But I thought..."

"Sakura," Kakashi sighed. "Naruto was banished by the Council. If that were all, then we would have merely gotten a replacement and done D-Rank missions until Sasuke was released from the hospital. But Sasuke vanished shortly after Naruto did. The Council listed him as a C-Rank nukenin, unofficially, as there's no proof that he left for Sound. Again."

Kakashi sighed, seeing the tears welling up in the girl's eyes. "I'm sorry Sakura. Team 7 no longer exists. Also, I think you're out of uniform..." he trailed off after noticing her blush. "But I think we can let it go as everyone is still getting used to all the new laws the Hokage is putting in place. Uh, about training, if you'd like, I can, I mean we can..."

"No," she interrupted him, her face and head downcast. "No, it's all right. I'll... I'll just go do some studying. I... I don't want to waste any more of your time... Hatake-san."

Kakashi watched as she stormed off back to the village. He sighed and considered pulling out his book again, but realized with a frown that he was no longer in the mood. He decided to go do some training instead.

_Hokage Tower_

_Next Day_

"Oh yeah, oh yeah, ooohhhhhhhhhhh YEAH!" Jiraiya cried out in almost orgasmic exaltation. "This is going to be my best novel EVER!"

He continued scribbling notes into the notebook and only stopped to put it away when there was a sharp knock on the door to his office. He paused for a moment to consider the sheer bizarreness and more than just a bit irony in that fact. _Him_, with an office!

"Come!" he called. The door immediately opened and Iruka entered. "Ah, Iruka, just the man I wanted to see. Tell me, have you got what I asked you for?"

"Uh, yes Hokage-sama," Iruka blushed crimson and handed over the requested item.

"Excellent!" Jiraiya chuckled gleefully. "Now I can start on the next phase of my plans."

"Plans, uh sir?" Iruka questioned, more than a bit nervous.

"Take a seat, Iruka," Jiraiya gestured. "I don't have to tell you how Naruto was railroaded, so I'm not going to mince words. More than half the Council hates Naruto and Minato's legacy. Even after learning that Naruto is the son of the Fourth, the civilians on the Council still refuse to even discuss opening up the file to reverse the judgment, or maybe even calling it time served by now. At least the Clan Heads are neutral, the ones that don't see themselves as owing a debt of honor to the kid and want him back for chances at marrying their daughters off to the last Namikaze. So, I've decided to get rid of the Council."

Iruka's eyes went wide and he started looking around nervously.

"Oh that's not what I meant and you know it!" Jiraiya scoffed. "The civilians are the problem. They're corrupt and while I have rumors and hearsay, I don't have the concrete evidence needed to prove that they're taking bribes from Danzo. This audit is part of my plan, but the big thing is getting the Council members to voluntarily quit. And what better way," he held up the package Iruka had just delivered, "then by pranking them? Rather fitting, all things considered, I thought."

Iruka stared, then suddenly grinned like Orochimaru listening to an all-boys-choir.

Scary thought, but accurate in image.

"By the way Iruka," Jiraiya interrupted his co-conspirator's pleasant pranking thoughts, "I've got a question I'd like you to answer, then a suggestion for you to consider."

"I'll do my best to answer anything you ask, Hokage-sama," Iruka dutifully replied.

"Good," the Sixth Hokage nodded. "I'd like to have Final Year and Remedial Academy students start doing D-Rank missions. They're starting to back up a bit, what with the previous years ninja force already being cut almost in half, either through promotions or... other events. I need my real shinobi, even genin, doing real missions bringing in money for the village, so I can't afford having the next generation of ninja, which are graduating in only another three months, needing extra training with D-Ranks when I could just immediately start them off on C-Ranks, which the village desperately needs, all things considered. Now the question is; what do you think of my idea here?"

Iruka nodded, giving the proposal some serious thought. Finally, he nodded, "I think it would be a good idea. But only the Remedial and Final Year students. We can set up a work-study program and have the school day increased by a couple of hours and shortening some of the more lengthy class periods and cutting the breaks in half. I think it's a good idea."

"Great! It starts tomorrow. Write up the schedule yourself, employ any of the other chuunin to help you complete anything you need help with, but I expect to see a schedule sheet for all classes on my desk before sunset tonight. Better get going." Jiraiya _suggested_.

Iruka, stunned, mutely got to his feet and stumbled out of the office.

"Anko, you can come in now!" he called, looking back down at some of the paperwork on his desk.

The fishnet-clad kunoichi stalked in, thrusting and grinding her curves in ways that would make most men drop dead from either heart attack or blood loss. Jiraiya devotedly kept his attention on his paperwork until the curvy Special Jounin was sat down in the chair in front of him. Without looking up he handed her a folder.

"I'm starting a new style of mission," he told her, his voice quite serious. "A-Rank. It will become one of our standards, if it makes it past the testing phase. First three missions are the critical ones, then it moves into probationary status if all three are successful, only becoming regularly offered after fifteen or more successful missions."

Pouting at how the one man she thought she could easily manipulate into giving her whatever mission she wanted, she opened the file and read through it. She stopped reading after the third line and started over. After finally having forced herself to read it all the way through, she glowered and asked him in a cold tone, "Is this for real?"

He nodded, then explained.

"Konoha will now be offering an 'escort service' as an A-Rank mission, plus extra depending on the client. Both kunoichi and shinobi hired out equally as "escorts" to whoever can afford it. Not just anyone can afford an A-Rank mission, you know."

"Not to mention, only jounin can do A-Ranks," Anko pointed out, glaring now. "It kind of guarantees that anyone assigned the mission will be past the age of consent."

Jiraiya finally looked up and frowned, staring her in the eyes. "It's not _that_ kind of mission. What kind of Hokage do you think I am? _Don't_ answer that!" he quickly moved his eyes back to his paperwork before they could stray to some place that would render his argument invalid.

"In fact, same as with the Chuunin Exams, there will be a _significant_ amount of paperwork to be filled out beforehand by both client and assigned ninja, whether male or female. Wavers and non-disclosure agreements and whatnot. If either party do not wish to engage in sexual acts, there will be legal support stating that it will not be happening."

"And what about the clients that want some, but the ninja that don't?" Anko crossed her arms over her considerable chest.

Jiraiya just gave her a look.

"Right," Anko rolled her eyes at her own question.

"So what do you need me to do about it?" she asked, finally coming to the point.

"I need you to pick the jounin that will be our test cases. Pick four jounin, two women, two men, including yourself, to participate in these four missions. I've already got the clients picked out, and they'll be here over the course of the next week. Choose the best match for all involved."

"Kurenai, Asuma, and Gai," she stated after flipping through the four folders. "I'll take this one."

Raising an eyebrow, Jiraiya quickly glanced at the folders and compared them with what she'd chosen for him. Intrigued, he shrugged and stamped his approval and sent out the notices for both client and ninja.

"Thank you," he said to her. "One last thing. You've been recently promoted to the IT department of ANBU, correct?" She nodded, curious about his question. "I'm sure Ibiki is already aware of this, but the violators choosing D-Rank missions is starting to get out of hand, and I need a lot of these people doing real work. Therefore, I want the entire IT department to come up with a list."

"A list? Of what?" Anko asked, intrigued despite herself.

"Of the most embarrassing, debasing, dehumanizing 'mission-style' tasks that all of you can come up with. Anything from street-vendors, side-show clowns, private eyes, and jutsu demos to hosts, in-home strippers, live porno or weird plays that nobody wants to see. Whatever is on the list that you all come up with, will be the punishment D-Rank missions that our miscreants will choose to perform for their violation of village laws. Any more questions?"

Anko grinned sadistically and responded with a pleasant, "No sir!"

"Good. Have the list ready by next Monday," he grinned back and smiled as he watched her leave.

_Hidden Location_

_Nighttime_

Sakura stared at the note in her hand. She was where it said to be, and it was getting close to midnight. Where was he? This was almost as bad as having to wait on Kakashi— no, Hatake-san. They were no longer student and teacher, and the way he acted about it, they might as well have never been.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting," an old voice said from the shadows.

Sakura jumped and turned to face the deepest part of the darkness and watched as a bandage-wrapped man hobbled out of them like a monster from the shadows. "I apologize," he said, "I did not mean to frighten you, Haruno-san."

"..." Sakura didn't say anything for a time, then asked, "Did you mean what you said? You can make me strong? Strong enough to bring... to bring Sasuke-kun back home? Strong enough to no longer be, well as I am? And you'll swear to never order, or allow the death of either Sasuke or Naruto so long as I'm with you?"

Danzo solemnly nodded his head. "Yes. Have you decided?"

She considered, biting her finger nervously and chewing on her lip for a bit. Finally she took a deep breath and let it out slowly, calming her nerves. She faced him, her eyes hard and her posture stiff, but sure.

Nodding her head, she agreed. "Yes, Danzo-sama. I give myself to you. I am yours."

He grinned, the bandages stretching tight as he said to her, "Welcome to _Root_, Haruno Sakura."

END _Nii_


	31. Preview of WIZKid HPXMen crossover

Title:Harry Potter: Whizkid

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:Marvel Universe will forever and for all time be the sole property of Stan Lee (and/or his Successor), while the HP Universe was written and created by JK Rowling, and since I am neither of those people, I don't get to make any money from this. I'm just doing it cause it's fun!

Summary:AU X-over HP / Marvel Universe. Harry Potter's a Wizard, Mutant, Student, and the Boy-Who-Lived. He has to deal with things from controlling his powers, learning magic, playing Quidditch, and keeping evil wizards, mutants, and aliens from killing him. Then his friends get involved, and things really get messy!

Author's Notes: This was inspired, partially, by the HP/X-Men crossover trilogy by "Harry Potter and the Children of the Atom by Classic Cowboy". A really good story worth reading, even if it goes so AU, I don't even bother reading it as anything but. Portions of this story also reflect my growing annoyance at everybody that immediately or 9 times out of 10 place Ron and the rest of the Weasleys as "pawns of Dumbledore" or "selfish, greedy purebloods that struck gold by being nice to Harry" and portray Ron as nothing but faults and Ginny as nothing but a slut. So, for a bit of flavor, I'm trying out the opposite end of the spectrum for once.

Year 0:

Harry James Potter was very sick the morning of the day that his life was changed forever. It wasn't the first time he'd been sick, in fact it was hardly surprising, since before he could remember, his Aunt and Uncle had put him in the cupboard under the stairs, and it wasn't exactly sanitary under there.

Still, he'd been having a nightmare, he couldn't remember what exactly, only that when he woke up, his scar had given him a few sharp pains, and his whole body felt like it was on fire, like the few times he'd had the flu over the years. Also, after the sharp pains had stopped, he was overwhelmed by a migraine-level headache that just did not go away. It certainly wasn't helped by his Aunt screaming for him to wake up and pounding on the door to his little cupboard.

"I'm up, I'm up!" he shouted through the door when she didn't stop immediately.

As always, in the summertime, after his Aunt had him cook them breakfast, during which he managed to sneak a piece of toast or a single strip of bacon, he was out in the garden weeding, mowing and taking care of the plants. The constant heat from the sun beating down on him certainly didn't help his migraine, but what made it really worse was both his Aunt and Uncle berating him, yelling at him, and doing basically what they'd done to him every single day of his life that he can truly remember.

His fat cousin Dudley added to the problem, but for the most part they didn't even bother talking to each other, and Harry was so little and scrawny, that he could often duck out of the way of his much fatter and all-around bigger cousin. In school, it was much worse, but they'd been out on "summer vacation" for a few weeks now, although for Harry, school was a much better vacation than it was for anybody else, since school at least got him away from the Dursley's for a a few hours a day.

Harry had finished all of the yard work, and was being watched through making them lunch, when the post arrived, and was rather rudely forced by Dudley and his Uncle to go get it for them. And that's when it happened. In sorting through the mail, not because he needed or wanted to, but because they would be shouting at him until Uncle Vernon had his paper, Aunt Petunia had her magazines, and the bills were all on the bottom. It was in this reorganizing of the stack that he came across a single envelope that stunned the young boy into stumbling a bit before reaching the kitchen. He held it like it was pure gold and would fly away if he let it go.

_Mr. H Potter_

_The Cupboard Under The Stairs_

_4 Privet Drive_

_Little Whining_

_Surrey_

It was a letter addressed to him.

It was folded up in heavy parchment, not thin white paper like what most people used, and the writing on it was in a pretty green ink. On the back was a unique crest with a large H in the middle, and four animals around it on all sides. It was the most wonderful thing Harry had ever seen.

He was so stunned by what he now held that he did not really register the fact that he had continued walking and had already dropped the mail off in front of his Uncle and returned to his seat, quiet as a whisper. Dudley very rarely ever took his eyes off the TV while he was eating, so Harry was quite surprised when his fat cousin actually had enough awareness to grab the letter out of his hands and start screaming.

"Mum! Dad! The _freak's_ got a letter!"

"Give that back!" Harry yelled immediately, a rage the likes of which he had never felt before tickling his insides. It wasn't too surprising, since he very rarely had anything for Dudley to take from him.

"What's this?" Uncle Vernon grabbed the letter from his son and stared at it, frowning. "Who would send _you_ a letter...?" The man's voice trailed off as he went startling pale, staring at the crest on the back of the parchment. "P-p-pet... Petunia...?"

She walked over, somewhat alarmed at her husband's reaction, until she saw the letter the same as he and looked like she was about to faint, vomit, and scream herself hoarse all at once.

"That is _my_ letter! Give it back!" Harry yelled, knowing from experience that logic never worked with these people, so hoping if he made enough of a nuisance of himself, they would give it to him just to shut him up. So far, it didn't seem to be working.

"Get out!" Uncle Vernon screamed at him. "Everyone, OUT NOW!"

Dudley, always able to recognize the danger signs of when he was about to get in trouble, left immediately, taking his food with him to the living room to watch TV in there. Harry, who would have been glaring his uncle down until he was either given his letter or shoved out the door, instead was clasping his head in pain, as his migraine had just jumped from 'bad headache' to '_actual_ migraine' and it was all he could do not to moan out loud.

He marshaled his reserves however, and managed to glare back at his Uncle, his anger and rage driving him on. "Give me back my letter!" he screamed.

"I SAID GET OUT!" the large man made to shove the boy down and drag him out, but just before he could touch the small boy's body, he was shocked by something, like static electricity. "OW! What...?"

Harry was trembling now, all in an effort to keep from exclaiming his pain. The aching pins and needles he'd felt since this morning flared up to a whole other level, making him wonder if this is what it felt like to be burned alive, but that didn't matter so long as he could still stand up. His anger and mounting rage at his mistreatment at the hands of these so-called relatives, drove him further than he'd ever thought he'd go before. The fact that the migraine made almost everything else white noise helped a bit.

"GIVE ME MY LETTER!!" he screamed, moving closer to his Aunt and Uncle, holding out his hand.

When they retreated a step, he wondered what would make them do that, until he caught something out of the corner of his eye. A spark. No... an electric arc, like that lightning ball that Dudley had, when you touched it the lightning touched your fingers. Only... it was coming from him?

It didn't matter, they still hadn't given him his letter, and Harry was, quite frankly, so used to weird stuff happening around him that he waved it off as nothing for now. He took another step and he noticed that everything metal or electric or able to hold a charge sparked and shot a bolt of electricity towards him. He didn't feel anything but the pain of his body and the white noise in his head. He also began to notice that a bluish-white haze began to appear around him. It still didn't matter.

"GIVE! ME! MY! LETTER!!" he screamed so loud that it echoed back at him.

The bolts of electricity that didn't hurt, shot at him again, only this time the haze around him became a wavy aura that kinda looked like flames, or 'electric fire' he'd seen one time in a documentary at school. Despite the odd and emotional circumstances, his mind chose then to recall that such phenomenon was not actually electricity, but a low-level, natural occurring form of what's known as plasma.

So he was surrounded by plasma, his head hurt, his body ached, and his relatives were making him angrier and angrier the longer they denied him. Although the looks of sheer terror on their faces was very pleasant to see, he had to admit.

"I said," he growled darkly, "GIVE ME MY LETTER!"

Suddenly, Uncle Vernon's face twists from terror and fear, to the same rage and anger Harry was feeling, and then he did something he really shouldn't have. He tore the letter in half.

Stunned, Harry just stared, unable to move, to think, to do anything but just stare at the one thing that had been given to him freely by somebody he did not even know... and now it was... gone. Destroyed by the tormentors of his life. He glared back up at Vernon Dursley, never again to call this man his Uncle. The physical pain was gone, not that it even held a candle's worth against the emotional pain that was tearing through him right then.

The plasma surrounding him went from 'electric fire' into a blinding blue-white flame that Harry surmised is what _real_ plasma is supposed to look like. Everything electrical around him suddenly exploded, the air grew hot, the floor beneath his feet starting to scorch and smolder. Vernon and Petunia Dursley cowered, hiding their eyes from the blinding light, and crying out at the heat and smell of the air. Harry couldn't see or hear any of that. All he felt, all he knew was the pain of having everything taken away from him by the people that should've loved him and taken care of him!

"AAARRRRRRRRGGGGHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!" Harry cried inarticulately in rage.

Outside the home, the neighbors had heard the screaming, and while it was rare, they'd heard it all before. Now, however, something was different. When they saw flashes of light coming from the kitchen, they wondered. When the flashes turned to a blinding strobe that came out of every window of the house, they grew concerned. When the kitchen blew up and the back half and side of the house exploded, they called the police.

_Elsewhere_

Professor Charles Xavier opened his eyes. He was sitting in the private room dedicated to the completely unique computer known as _Cerebro_, having been connected to it for a little over an hour now, just running diagnostics mostly, but also keeping an eye out on things. Cerebro, you see, was the only computer in the world that can identify every single mutant on the planet, but even then, only when linked with the mind of the most powerful psychic on the planet.

Known to his X-Men as Professor X, he quickly removed his helmet and placed it back on its stand before turning and directing his specialized wheelchair to take him out of the room. Already, he was using his mutant gift of telepathy to contact those he needed to meet with as soon as possible.

_'Phoenix, Cyclops, Wolverine, Beast, Banshee, Nightcrawler, Shadow Cat, Colossus. Meet me in the War Room, at once_.'

_'What is it Professor?'_ Jean Grey 'Phoenix' Summers asked back in the same method.

_'I'll explain shortly. Also, prep the jet for supersonic flight. We don't have much time.'_

By this point, he had already made it down the hall and entered the War Room himself, the fully-equipped tactical and command center based in the underground home beneath the X-Mansion. When he felt that all his 'students' were on their way, he began pulling up the information he'd need from Cerebro onto the tactical map, a holographic piece of technology lent to them by some friends.

Once most of them were in the room, the Professor answered Jean's original question verbally for the sake of those that were uncomfortable with telepathic communication.

"I've discovered a new mutant with Cerebro, one who just manifested. He's powerful already, and barely even 11 years old. His psychic signature was powerful enough that, despite the fact he's an ocean away, I was able to pull many details of his life from his mind during his... tantrum," Charles explained.

On the holographic map, it was zooming in on England, just outside of London. Thanks, in part, to the combined efforts of Beast and Shadow Cat, they were able to combine maps and radar read-outs with live satellite imagery, so when it zoomed in on 4 Privet Drive, they weren't seeing a dot on a map, but the current status of the house, and how the back half of it had been turned into a blackened crater.

"Tantrum, huh?" Wolverine grunted while taking a drag from his cigar. "My kinda kid."

"Needless to say," Professor X continued, "he's extraordinarily powerful, both in his mutation and mentally. If even half of what happened to him that I gleaned from his mind when his powers manifested here is true, he has been through enough without having to deal with the blame for something like this. As you can see, the police are already on their way, and after his... display, the boy was knocked unconscious, so he's still there. We can deal with the complications later on, but right now we need to get to him."

"Banshee, Colossus, Nightcrawler, Shadow Cat, I know you were just here for a few days, but right now this must become a priority. Go with Beast and Wolverine. Stop off at the Avengers, and pick up Scarlet Witch. Wolverine, in accordance with our agreement with the Avengers at times like these," everyone knew he was referring to the 'International Incident' from a few days previously that had the Avengers on High Alert and all active members ready to deploy at a moments notice, "you'll be staying in Wanda's stead on their team."

"Excuse me, Charles," Hank 'Beast' McCoy interrupted, "but is it truly so necessary to take Wanda with us? If it's just retrieving the boy so he does not come to any harm, why not just send Kurt and Kitty in a jet?"

"Unfortunately, I can't explain my reasonings just yet, as I have several things I must confirm first," Charles answered. "Mostly, this is just all precautionary. Furthermore, don't bring him back here, take him straight to Muir Island. I'll be contacting Moira right after you leave so she'll be expecting you."

"I'm sorry, Professor," Scott 'Cyclops' Summers spoke up. "But I just don't understand. Why are you so up in arms about this one mutant? Just how powerful is he?"

"It's not all about how powerful he is, Scott," Charles replied. "Though that most certainly is part of it. This much precaution actually comes from _who_ this young man is."

"Who is he?" came the expected question.

"Harry Potter."


	32. Körpertausch03

USC Campus

"This will never work!" Buffy hissed to Willow as the three of them stood just inside the lectern that was Buffy and Willow's Psychology classroom.

"Professor Walsh!" Willow called the Professor, who was sitting at her desk, with Riley close beside her, grading papers. Willow hissed back to the taller male, "It will, just give it a chance!"

The older blonde woman looked up in surprise at being called by name. Her eyebrows went up in a way that made her entire demeanor look from then on like the epitome of "annoyed".

"Ms. Rosenberg, Ms Summers. To what do I owe the pleasure of you waiting around after class? Perhaps to get a jumpstart on your make-up papers?" the professor snidely commented.

"Actually yes," Willow said, staying with the ball as the three of them walked in. "Actually, we, Buffy and I, needed to discuss with you a paper that we'd like to write, for the entire year. We were hoping we could be excused from the Final and all other tests. If you thought what we were doing was worth it that is."

Professor Walsh slowly turned her gaze to look at each of them, her features best described as skeptical. Riley was just trying to disappear into the shadows. No matter how much he was attracted to Buffy, he was not about to get between one of Walsh's tantrums and whomever it was targeted at.

"And what, if I may ask, is this experiment?" the older blonde asked with barely veiled venom.

"A Freudian reverse personality behavior study," Willow stated calmly.

Professor Walsh blinked in surprise. She hadn't expected something like that. "Uh huh," she clicked her tongue in a way that was familiar to the three youths.

"See what would happen, well, actually, or rather unfortunately, happened would be that Buffy, and our closest friend Xander here," Buffy smiled and waved, "would be hypnotized into believing that they have switched bodies with the other. See, Xander believes that he is Buffy, and Buffy would believe that she is Xander. Also, the hypnosis, going along with the whole switched bodies aspect, would not include seeing the other as the other, but they would see their own truthful bodies. Even in the mirror."

"You said unfortunately?" the Professor tried to clear up some of her confusion.

"They've already been hypnotized," Willow stated glumly. "And it worked. Now all that remains is the study part."

"So…wait," Riley suddenly spoke, "Buffy thinks she's a guy? Specifically _this_ guy?"

"Bingo," Xander riley commented, "Gold star for the blondie from Iowa." Then in a whisper to Buffy, she added, "OK, he's got good hair, better than Deadboy's by a long shot."

"I like him for more than his hair Xander! And don't even think about it!" Buffy hissed back in the same volume. Unfortunately it was just enough for everyone else in the room to hear them.

"Uh… If you don't mind Professor, I'll do the rest of these later this evening," Riley said after a brief silence and then left without waiting for a word from the Professor.

"Uh, how-how long would this experiment of yours take?" the Professor asked, scratching the back of her neck, trying to keep from being thrown off balance.

"The rest of the semester," Willow answered with a smile.

"Well," the Professor stared at Buffy and Xander for several moments, before finally nodding, "All right. You have your leave. I must admit that I'm fairly curious about your findings after this experiment is complete. Keep me appraised."

"Thank you Professor Walsh, don't worry, we'll keep you up to date, thank you again, bye!" with all that being said as Willow was dragging Buffy and Xander out of the room.

"Okay, that takes care of school, now we just have to find this Fire-Eye guy and get him to change us back!" Buffy listed as they walked off the College grounds and headed back to Giles' apartment.

A few hours later, half spent in research, the other half spent in going to every one of Buffy's "sources" and asking if they knew anything about a Balance demon named Jeremiah Fire-Eye. Spike, of course, knew nothing, Willy admitted that he'd heard the guy was in town, after Xander got to have some fun in finding out what the body of the Slayer could do to another human body, (the typical fun, beat some guy up stuff), but as the Balance demon had not made contact with other demons, come into Willy's bar, or even made any effort whatsoever to make himself seen, Willy knew nothing. Finally, they were all back at Giles' place, because they had no clue about what to do now.

Willow quickly fixed that problem by pulling out a notebook and began writing, occasionally looking up at Buffy and Xander. "Watch'ya doin' Wills?" Xander asked, the blonde woman bouncing down onto the couch next to the redhead witch.

"Buffy's and mine Psych paper," Willow answered, continuing to write.

"I… thought that was just a cover story Wills?" Buffy asked, his voice beginning to rise in pitch a little.

"It is. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't do it. All scientific progress aside, our grades are now depending on this grade Buffy. Believe it or not, this demon might have saved our college careers with this switch thing. Or at least your grades for the semester." Willow explained.

"But… I'm not going to have to look at ink blots or anything, am I?" Xander asked.

"No," Willow shook her head. "Well, you'll have to fill out weekly surveys, I'll write those up later tonight. And don't worry Buffy, I'll do all the compiling, you just be honest. And don't worry Xander, nothing too private. And you are still wearing the blindfold tonight."

"Aw come on! The thing gets soaked when we do my hair, and could one of you please explain _why_ it takes nearly an hour just to do my hair!?" Xander exclaimed.

Buffy rolled his eyes. "Well, first there's washing it, then there's shampooing it, then there are my conditioners, and I always like to add a bit of coloring every once and a while during a shower, and then theirs rewashing it to get all the chemicals out, and then there's drying it…" He trailed off as he caught the look Xander was giving him.

"What?" he asked.

"Don't talk like a girl in my body! And why the hell do you need to wash it twice, and I thought shampooing _was_ washing it!" she exploded.

Again, Buffy rolled his eyes. "GILES!" he bellowed.

There was a thump from the back study, and then some muffled British curses as the ex-Watcher came stumbling into the living room. "What is it Xander?" he asked, his voice tight with tension.

"Buffy actually," the dark haired man corrected, "Any luck on places to look yet? Counter spells? Anything?"

Giles stared in confusion at the young man for several moments before shaking himself and sighing. "I forgot. And no… nothing yet. Er, Buffy, I've told you before, the only way to reverse this is to get the caster to reverse it himself. And even if we find this demon, how do you propose that we force him to do just that?"

Buffy shrugged. "Simple. I kick his ass, beat him to a bloody pulp, and he does it."

"Buffy, you are no longer the Slayer. You can't even kick my ass anymore," Giles pointed out. Buffy's face went blank for a moment before he suddenly looked very depressed.

"Oh, I forgot," he mumbled as he plopped down on the couch next to Xander.

"However, if there is to be any beating… we still need to train," Giles continued.

Buffy suddenly perked back up. Next best thing to taking frustrations out on a vamp or a demon was taking them out on helpless training equipment and Giles. His good mood lasted all of the three seconds before Giles added, "Xander. If you'll please join me. I'm afraid we're going to have to start with the basics."

Both victims of the body switch looked up in shock at the ex-Watcher.

"_Me?!_" Xander squeaked.

"HIM!" Buffy shouted. "Her," both Xander and Willow corrected. Buffy just glared at them before shifting it to Giles.

"You are the Slayer Xander, much as it pains me to say that," Giles stated. That seemed to clinch it, because there was no arguing with the facts that they all knew.

Xander gulped, took a deep breath, and let it out as a long sigh. Then, steeling herself, she got to her feet and nodded, following Giles.

"Willow!" Buffy called. Willow looked up, as Buffy gestured for Xander. "I work out in training clothes, remember?" he reminded the witch. Willow's eyes went wide and she quickly got up and followed Xander.


	33. Power Rangers: Slayer Home

**Power Rangers: Slayer**

_Episode 4: Home_

"You gotta be kiddin' me!" Faith exclaimed as they entered the two-story house on Revello Drive. "_This_ is all that your mighty watchery unlimited expenses can afford?"

"Be glad it is what it is Faith," Joyce said patiently as both she and Buffy came in carrying boxes from the car. "And do keep in mind that this is coming out of my own accounts, not directly from the Watchers."

"But thanks to us, they're still giving you income, from several accounts, even if they don't know about it yet," Buffy said a bit too smugly as she walked up the stairs with three massive boxes stacked precariously on top of one another. "And if you think this is bad Faith, just wait until we start school next week."

"What!" the brunette Slayer exclaimed. "Why the hell do we have to go to school?! B! We've go implanted knowledge, heck we're smarter than most of those college professors they brought in to _test_ our IQ's. Why do we have to go to _school_?"

"American High School, not to put too fine a point on it," Buffy added as she came back down the stairs. Faith's eyes went up and she stayed put and quiet until Buffy and Joyce returned with more boxes.

"_American_ High School?" Faith repeated. Buffy just nodded as she went back up the stairs. Faith turned to Joyce. "And what are you going to be doing while we're livin' it up with all the other cool teens in town?"

Joyce snickered slightly as she set down several of the small boxes in her arms in the foyer leading to the kitchen. "Go get the furniture Faith," Joyce told her," and…_maybe_ I'll tell you."

Faith was gone before she had fully stood up and in the next moment, the disassembled hide-a-bed couch was in the living room, followed by a blur that soon had the three carpets, followed by three chairs and the two recliners that went in the living room, and before Buffy had gotten back down the stairs, the kitchen table and chairs and in fact more than half the furniture from the truck was in the house, though still disassembled and scattered with no place.

Buffy laughed out loud when she saw Faith working the beds, one in each hand, through the doorway. She quickly moved out of the way as Faith raced upstairs with them and then raced back down to get the rest of them.

"And how did you convince her to do this by herself?" Buffy asked her mother as they stood off to the side in order to stay out of Faith's way.

"I told her that I would tell her what I would be doing while you two were in school. Maybe." Joyce giggled slightly. Buffy joined her as she knew that curiosity alone was driving Faith and that it would make her do all the rest of the moving in if Joyce actually told her in the end. Buffy thought it best to wait until Faith had gotten the last of the beds before saying anything to her sister.

"So…what _are_ you going to be doing? Are you going to take that art critic job I pointed out to you?" Buffy asked.

Joyce smiled briefly, entertaining the thought of tricking Buffy the same way she tricked Faith, but she knew her daughter better than that. "No. I'm actually…"

"Aww come on!" Faith screeched in the foray on her way back to the truck. "I ask and end up doing all this work and B asks and you two hide away and whisper it between you two while I finish everything else?! This bites!"

Joyce giggled again, while Buffy just smiled lovingly at her sister. "I actually was asking Joyce if she had taken the job that I found for her, but she said she hadn't. Besides, you were so focused that I didn't want to ruin your concentration, since it takes so long for you to get it," Buffy teased Faith.

Faith's frown lightened some, but she still pouted. "So…she didn't tell you?" she asked Buffy.

Buffy shrugged and shook her head no. Then both clones turned and turned on their full power "doe eyes" on their adoptive mother and let their actions speak for them. Joyce just smiled, reveling in the power she held, albeit temporarily, over the two Slayers. She successfully avoided their soul-squeezing looks for a good minute or so, and when she finally held their tearful gazes, she struggled to retain her composure. Finally she broke the contest by turning her back to cover up the worst of her giggles, and saying aloud, "Tell you what girls, I'll tell you all about it over dinner, which I will start once we have everything inside and more or less placed as we need it." She turned back around, once again in control of her outward expression, and asked, "What do you think of that?"

Buffy and Faith turned and regarded one another. Then Faith's expression became more confused. "We aren't having Chinese again?" she asked in answer to their concerned looks.

Joyce genuinely smiled, giving her daughter her best encouraging grin. "No honey. We're going to have our very first home-cooked meal on our very first night in our very own home. We've already got everything we need in the kitchen already, and thankfully the fridge and microwave were already in before we got here and the plumbing and everything else works. It's only the middle of the afternoon, so I don't need to start making it just yet."

Buffy smiled at Joyce, before frowning slightly and creasing her brow.

"What's wrong Buffy?" Joyce asked immediately.

Buffy looked up, her worried look gone. Then she smiled, "Oh, nothing. I was just thinking of how sick I was of Chinese all the time. I personally could go for some pizza right now though."

"B, we aren't allowed to have piz-" Faith stopped herself suddenly as she realized that the rules that had dictated her most of her life no longer applied. A large and wicked grin took control of her face. "Oh yeah! We _can_! Hey Mom? Can we, me and Buffy, go out for pizza if we finish bringing everything in, before dinner that is?"

"But what about-" Joyce stopped herself as she realized who she was talking to. She smiled as well and nodded her head. "All right. Once we get everything set and you get your beds made in your rooms—"

"Room." Buffy corrected.

Joyce nodded at her oversight and corrected her speech, "—room, then yes, you can go out for pizza at that pizzeria we saw coming through downtown. Just be back before 9 o'clock, that's when I plan on having supper ready. By the way, since we're in another time zone and everything, and summer is just ending, sunset is a little later than you're used to, so don't get too caught up in…_things_, all right?"

Both girls nodded and said together, "We promise."

Joyce nodded and directed the girls forward to finish unloading the truck. She saw the identical mischievous grins just an instant before there were two blurs right in front of her eyes and before she could make another move, all the furniture and boxes from the truck were being brought in at an amazing speed and it was entirely unloaded within two minutes.

Joyce just sighed, much like her own mother did when she was Buffy and Faith's apparent ages. She then went straight to her purse when she heard both girls upstairs racing to get their shared room in order. She could manage the rest, except maybe the living room with all the furniture, by herself, but anything else could wait for the girls' return later that evening.

Joyce managed to have the two twenty dollar bills in her hand and outstretched, just as Buffy and Faith came running down the stairs, in what they had dubbed themselves "Slayer gear"; loose fitting, but highly fashionable dark pants, tennis shoes, tight-fitting tank tops (Buffy: yellow, Faith: black) and matching black leather jackets. Joyce was sure that the both of them had a small arsenal of daggers and stakes on them, and other assorted weapons that had become rather trademark of the legend of the Slayer.

Buffy, as she ran by her mother, grabbed the first twenty, while Faith, who was immediately behind her blond twin, grabbed the second. The door was already open, so just as the two were jumping from the porch, they shouted at the same time over their shoulders, "Bye Mom! See you in a little while!" And then they were gone before Joyce could do or say anything more.

So instead she just smiled, sighed once more, and closed the door. She leaned against the wooden portal for some time, thinking about the past few weeks. Then she smiled as she came to the most recent memories, and then she went about making this new house…a home.


	34. Harry Potter And The Omniband

Title: Harry Potter and the Omniband

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:JK Rowling has Harry, and whoever else from the books show up in these plots. I don't own either and I'm not making any money from all this, so don't bother suing me. The concept of the Omnitrix was created by "Man Of Action" and is owned by Cartoon Network. Ditto for Max, Ben and Gwen Tennyson.

Summary: What if Harry gets the magical equivalent of the Omnitrix? Instead of 10 Alien Heroes however, Harry turns into 10 different Magical Creatures.

Part 1: Torch

It was a normal day in Diagon Alley. August first, one month until the next semester at Hogwarts begins, so of course there were a fair number of young people flitting here and about all over the center of the magical world's economy. In particular, one young boy, just turned eleven and his half-giant guide were enjoying their day of shopping.

After getting the boy his wand, Hagrid felt his job was done for the time being and it was time for a mead break. So, giving Harry the last of the gold retrieved from the boy's vault, and taking the trunk full of books and supplies and everything while leaving the owl free to sit comfortably on Harry's shoulder, Hagrid told the young Harry Potter to explore and enjoy himself and that they'd meet back at the pub entrance of the alley in one hour.

Eager to do just that, Harry ignored his normally sensible instincts that were shouting at him not to leave Hagrid's side no matter what, and turned around with his new owl to explore this new world he was part of.

Meanwhile, not too far away, it was a normal day in Knockturn Alley too. Unfortunately, normal for Knockturn Alley was _anything_ but peaceful.

"_Confringo_!" a dark cloaked figure cast the blasting curse at another figure, one that was running down the alley carrying a chest.

The fleeing wizard spun on the spot and cast, "_Protego_!"

The blasting curse exploded against the shimmering magical shield, directing almost all of the energy directly back at the dark wizard that had fired it in the first place. He hissed and dove to the side, casting a wordless freezing charm at the explosion to keep himself from getting killed by his own spell. Once he was back on his feet, he saw his target still running away, clutching the chest he was after.

Snarling, the man threw back his hood revealing a metallic skull-mask, the mask worn by the Death Eaters of Voldemort and resumed the chase.

Glancing back the man being chased saw the distance between him and the Death Eater and cursed as it wasn't as much as he'd been hoping for. This wasn't what he signed on for! He thought to himself. He was just supposed to do some spell research, maybe occasionally take a look at an enchanted item every once in a while when his colleagues were stumped! Not be at the edge of a conspiracy within the government to work at bringing back the Dark Lord!

He glanced back one more time and then dove into a nook not too far from the entrance to Diagon Alley from Knockturn Alley. The Death Eater raced past, curving back into Knockturn Alley before anyone could get a good look at his mask. The Unspeakable from the Department of Mysteries in the Ministry of Magic sighed in relief, for the moment. He suffered no delusions, he knew it was only a matter of time before he was found and killed and the box stolen with what was inside someday to be used as a tool for the Death Eaters power.

He had to get rid of it.

Not that he could actually destroy it. What was contained in the chest he held couldn't be destroyed by the power of one measly wizard no matter how powerful. Still, he could ensure that it went to someone that would use it for good, to _fight_ the Death Eaters and prevent them from raising their destroyed master from the grave.

Quickly, he took an old crate that held what looked like expired squelch fruit, and transfigured it into an _exact_ replica of the chest he'd been carrying. Given how much time he'd spend investigate and analyzing the chest it was a _very_ good replica. Then taking the real one he cast a highly complex spell on it.

Well to be perfectly honest the most complex thing about it had been researching it and discovering who'd first created it and all the times it'd been used since. It was a spell that had been used in the past to send incredibly powerful objects of power and magic to the ones that needed them and would use it for the greater good. It had sent Excalibur to Arthur, the Spear of Light to Cuculan, and the Wand of Heroes to Dumbledore for his battle against Grindelwald. It only consisted of a single wand movement and a two-syllable word.

"_Eicio_!" he cast and instantly the chest launched high into the air over the alleys, arching away from Knockturn Alley the Unspeakable was glad to see.

Now the hard part. He had to attract the Death Eater's attention before he saw the chest flying through the air and keep that attention until he was certain that it was in the hands that it belonged to. Grabbing the transfigured crate, he ran out from his hiding spot and ran back into Knockturn Alley. It was only moments before the Death Eater was on his tail.

Meanwhile back on Diagon Alley, Harry was looking in the window at the _Nimbus 2000_ that was on display at Quality Quidditch when he heard a sound like a gun firing and then saw something like fireworks going off and shooting up in the sky. Curious more than anything, he saw that it wasn't actually fireworks, but some object that looked to have been shot straight up into the air. Slowly, he tracked where it would land, surprised that it seemed to be landing not too far away from where he stood.

Quickly, following the smoke trail that everybody around him was ignoring and seemed to take as a matter of course, he got to the hidden away niche between two stores just after the thing had crashed. He dashed in between two arguing wizards, who never even notice him come between them and soon found what had been falling. It looked like a chest or box of some kind. Surprisingly, despite the fall that it had just suffered it had little to no damage on it. It looked to be a very expensive chest at that with gold seams, decorative runes carved into them, and gemstones and other fancy things to make it look pretty all over it.

Still curious, Harry slowly reached out a hand and touched it. It was cool and by touch just an ordinary chest about the size of Dudley's fourth TV he keeps in the patio room. So not very big, but big enough to hold anything from a lot of jewelry to a severed head. Given how expensive the box looked Harry was willing to put his money on jewelry.

Frowning to himself, he looked for the latch to open it up, but couldn't find anything. The closest thing that looked like it would let him open it was a strange panel that had a pointy thing at the center of it. Forgetting the proverb about how curiosity killed the cat, he investigated the panel more closely, running his thumb over it. He jumped back when he felt a sharp pain and saw that the pointy thing had cut him. A small pinprick of blood pooled on his thumb. He sucked off the blood to quench the pain, glad it was only a pinprick.

Then the most amazing thing happened.

The chest clicked and slowly opened up on it's own while Harry just sat there and stared. A blinding golden light emerged from the chest, forcing Harry to cover his eyes. When it finally subsided Harry looked in and was surprised to find that he was mostly right. Instead of being filled with jewelry there was only a single silver armband, though it could just as easily fit around his own forearm.

Inching closer, Harry reached out with his left hand to see if he could tell any more about the box or who it belonged to. After all this kind of thing isn't something a person would just throw away.

Before he even knew what was happening, the silver band jumped up, _on its own_, and latched itself around his left forearm sealing itself on skintight. Though not tight enough to be uncomfortable or pinching but tight enough that he couldn't even reach up under it to reach the skin beneath.

"WHAAAAAAH!" Harry screamed, skidding back from the box, shaking his arm to get the thing off.

After it didn't so much as slide or pinch from where it had latched itself on, he stopped panicking and took a closer look at it. Before he could really investigate though, the chest that the band had been in caught on fire. Without anything nearby to start a fire with by the way. Fortunately the fire didn't spread beyond the chest itself, which was completely destroyed. When it finally petered out there was hardly any ash at all.

Blinking in surprise Harry did a double-take between the small pile of ash and the silver band now on his arm. Deciding it would be better to not be there right now, he scurried to his feet and covered the band with the overly large sweatshirt he had on and raced back to the Leaky Cauldron to meet up with Hagrid. He'd had enough window shopping on the alley for one day.

Back in Knockturn Alley, the Unspeakable had been dueling the Death Eater and two of his friends that had showed up to help. The transfigured chest was behind him and his back was against the wall, so to speak, as they were at the furthest end of Knockturn Alley with only a solid barrier and some ward stones between them and Muggle London. The Unspeakable had managed to disable the Death Eater's two helpers, one stunned and the other restrained with magical ropes, but the first one was still giving him trouble.

Finally, he felt what he'd been waiting for. The signal he'd planted on the chest, indicating that it had been destroyed finally went off. Since the chest could _only_ be destroyed once what was in it, the _Omniband_, had been removed and bonded itself to a host that mean that for better or worse it had fallen into the hands of the one meant to have it. He only had a moment of breathing room as both he and the Death Eater tried to gather their energy to continue the fight. Except, he no longer needed to continue the fight.

Without hesitation or any more waiting he cast the one spell he knew he'd be using before the fight even got to this point. A murder/suicide spell guaranteed to take out everyone within thirty feet of its casting. The last thing the Unspeakable saw was the Death Eater's eyes go wide as he was caught completely off guard. He was at least pleased that the Death Eater's two friends were within range of the spell's influence and would be going with them.

In Diagon Alley, everyone still there felt the street beneath them shake and a sound like thunder, only louder and different, and a flash of energy coming from Knockturn Alley. Conversation ceased for all of ten seconds as people turned to stare and then after that they went right back to doing what they had been doing. Unfortunately, a fact of the Wizarding World is that explosions and loud noises are just a part of life. In Knockturn Alley, the explosions were just as often a part of everyday occurrences ranging from a murder to a misfiring spell or bad potion.

The next morning the papers held a story detailing a Ministry Employee who died from an attack by some unknown dark wizard in Knockturn Alley. There were no names, in fact the whole story was only a single paragraph in length, right between two advertisements for the Daily Prophet sponsored businesses.

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Later that afternoon, almost evening in fact, Harry had finally made his way back to 4 Privet Drive. As much as he'd been hoping though, it seemed that he would not have the house all to himself for however many days it took the Dursley's to get back from the shack on a rock in the middle of the sea, as they were already back.

With a sigh and a heavy heart, Harry carried his trunk and all the rest of the things he'd gotten today with Hagrid today at Diagon Alley. Knowing better than to waste his time trying the door, or looking for a key (there never was one), Harry set his things down and pressed the doorbell and then sat down on his trunk to wait. They would either let him in, or he would sit out on the porch until one of the neighbors saw him sitting there and the Dursley's let him in out of shame. It had happened before.

While he waited, he took the opportunity to take a better look at the band that had gotten stuck on his arm earlier today. He hadn't been able to move it, let alone get it off, no matter what he tried. He'd even shown it to Hagrid, but the drunk half-giant just grinned and complemented him on his accessory. Without using so many words of course.

Speaking of which, Harry had some time to closer inspect it on the journey back to Privet Drive, thanks to a taxi driver that didn't ask any questions upon seeing the gold coin Harry held out to him. The band was mostly silver, though portions of it were so light and so dark they might be called white and black, but overall it was a gray silver color. It covered his young arm from wrist to halfway to his elbow, a lighter silver seam circling the rounded edges of the band. It was a darker silver, almost black but more dark-gray, on the bulk of the band, except in the center on the top part. There was a jeweled design there.

It was sort of like a diamond inside a circle, actually, as he inspected it closer, that's exactly what it was. An upraised portion of the band formed a circular plate, upon which a diamond rested, coming to a sharp point at the center, and touching the edges of the plate at four points. The shadows and light played havoc with Harry's vision as he looked at the diamond, as looking at it from one angle had the 'top half' of the diamond looking 'white' and the same 'half' of the circle cast in shadow so it looked 'black', and then the opposite of the 'bottom half', where the diamond looked 'black' and the circle looked 'white'!

Just outside of the circle and diamond though, were a series of grooves and 'pearls' though they weren't actually pearls, but just rounded beads of silver placed symmetrically around the circle and diamond. Of course, all over the band, Harry could feel small grooves here and there, though they were not easily visible, he could feel them with his fingertips. As he traced one groove in particular, he realized it kind of felt like letters, but not any kind of letters he even recognized!

Unfortunately, before he could determine the exact nature of the band, the taxi arrived at 4 Privet Drive and Harry had to get out, taking his trunk and new owl with him. It was then that he noticed the car parked in the driveway and realized what that meant. Leading to where he now sat in front of the door to his home, waiting to be let in. Since he had the time, he started feeling around the band again, trying to determine what kind of lettering was etched all over the thing.

It took a while, but he finally noticed that a lot of the lettering was similar, though not the same, to some things he'd seen in Diagon Alley earlier that morning. A few of them he'd even seen in his spell books that he'd browsed through. The snowy white owl, still in her cage beside him, hooted questionably. Harry sighed and shrugged.

"I don't know how much longer we'll have to be out here girl. I don't have a key, and UNTIL THE DURSLEY'S LET ME IN, I'm just going to HAVE TO STAY OUT HERE ALL NIGHT, _WHERE EVERYBODY CAN SEE ME_!" he shouted at the door and all around the neighborhood.

There was raised voices from inside where even Harry could hear them, but no sounds of the door being unlocked or opened. He sighed and shrugged helplessly at his companion. She gave a bird-shrug in reply, then reached out a talon for the door to her cage.

Harry blinked, then looked around, surprised to see the sky already darkening and a few porch lights coming on automatically. It was getting dark and the sun was setting. Knowing that owls were nocturnal creatures by design, Harry nodded and smoothly opened the door to the cage.

"Well, at least one of us should be doing something worthwhile. If I'm still out here when you get back girl, maybe you should go find help. Like the police for child abandonment or something," Harry said out loud to the owl on his arm preening her with his fingers. He listened as there was another commotion inside the house, but still no sign of the door being opened. Harry sighed and then allowed his owl to fly off, though she did not go far.

"Wonder what this thing is anyway," Harry muttered softly, turning back to the band on his arm. He knew pretty much from the start that it was magical, but it hadn't responded in the slightest to his touch, no matter how many times he ran his fingers over the jewels and the writing.

So maybe, he thought to himself, since it's magical it will only respond to something else that's magical. Like a wand! Excited by this line of thought, Harry quickly pulled out his wand, which he'd kept in the box in his trunk. Taking it out, he saw an immediate response, as the tip of his wand was glowing that same warm yellow/red that the sparks had been when he'd first waved it around. The band too was responding now, as the pearls around the diamond plate were softly glowing. Not vividly or all that noticeably, but enough that Harry could tell the difference.

Face etched in concentration, Harry slowly brought his wand closer to the band and gently tapped the glowing tip against the pearl closest to him as he held it up before him. Instantly, the diamond at the center lit up with a golden yellow light and where it had once been smoky and shadow-filled, it was now crystal clear and showing a silhouette of some kind. Curious, Harry brought his wand closer to the diamond, absently making a swishing motion with it. Instantly the silhouette changed to something completely different.

Surprised and encouraged by this discovery, Harry repeated the motion a few more times, the silhouette changing each time. After about a minute of this Harry realized that the forms began to repeat themselves and by his count there were roughly 8 or 10 different silhouettes showing up. It was actually hard to tell with a couple of them as at least two could have been the same one out of sequence but he wasn't sure.

Finally settling on one of the more unique silhouettes he saw, it kind of looked like a long-tailed lizard with something on the tip of its tail, he decided to see what else this thing could do besides show off cool shapes. He briefly wondered if there were magic words to go along with it, but he didn't know any besides the generic ones everybody in the world knew. Out of sheer silliness, he recited most of them, waving his wand in a figure eight above the band, but nothing happened. Except that it got _really_ quiet inside the house, but he didn't notice that at the time.

Frowning, Harry shrugged and raised his wand above his head and then brought it down, intending to tap the same pearl thing that he had before, but at the last second the door swung open to reveal a red-faced fuming Vernon Dursley. He looked furious and the sudden opening of the door startled Harry, enough that he 'missed' in where his wand finally landed and tapped the center of the diamond instead.

"BOY!" Vernon shouted in a strained voice, about to do violence right there on his own front step, but before he could, the freak's wand touched the funny looking bracelet thing on his hand first. That's when Dursley's world crashed down around him, metaphorically speaking. In a flash of yellow-gold light, the boy disappeared and something _else_ reappeared!

For Harry, the experience was vastly different!

Despite questionable treatment by his relatives Harry had never been electrocuted before, but he would imagine that getting struck by a bolt of lightning felt much like this! His whole body was charged with energy and it felt like that energy was still coursing through him in a never ending loop trying to find a way out! All of it starting and coming from that band on his wrist!

Then he felt his body begin to _change_! His limbs and bones shrunk, his muscles tightened, his veins and organs shifted, and his skin reshaped itself becoming leathery like a lizard's! That's about when the heat started! He was so hot! It felt like fire was pouring through his veins instead of blood and that's about the time he noticed the tail growing out of the base of his spine! On the tip of the whip-like leathery tail was a ball of fire, he held it up to his face for a second and then flicked the tail around behind him with a swooshing sound! By this time, he'd finally noticed the rest of the changes had completed and he was now a four foot (seven if you count the tail) orange-brown giant lizard with big green eyes and a flame on the tip of its tail, which was arched over his back like a scorpion's tail!

After the flash of yellow-gold light had dissipated, there was a moment of silence on the doorstep of Number Four Privet Drive, and then two voices screamed out in sheer terror. One of those voices was of course Vernon Dursley who had just seen the strangest thing he'd ever witnessed, and that scared him more than anything else. The other was the now _fire salamander_ that had only moments before been a young Harry Potter.

"Whu-whu-whu... What happened to me?!" the salamander shouted, displaying a highly unique ability as no other fire salamander on the planet could speak. It's voice, for the record, was rather deep and rumbly but not gravely. It certainly wasn't the voice Harry was used to. He spent half a second looking around for the man that had spoken, but only saw his still screaming Uncle. Only after another few seconds did he realize that the strange voice was _him_! "And what happened to my voice?!"

"AAAHHHHH!" Vernon screamed and grabbed a broom and tried to sweep the _thing_ out of his house.

"Hey! That hurts!" salamander-Harry cried out. He instinctively swung his tail forward to bat the offending object away but neglected to pay close attention as the wrong part of his tail hit the straw of the broom thus catching it on fire.

"AAAHHHHH!" Vernon screamed now because his broom was on fire. He dropped it on the shag carpet and grabbed the baseball bat he usually threatened Harry with when he didn't do all of Dudley's chores.

Fear gripped the fire salamander at that moment and fire salamanders, unfortunately for Vernon, react only one way to fear. The orange-brown creature turned a menacing red and yellow before opening it's mouth wide, aiming for the bat more than the man and a massive fireball about the size of a football shot out and destroyed the bat in seconds. Unfortunately it also spread the flames, and the burning broom on the shag carpet hadn't helped either.

An hour later, all said and done, only Harry's things remained of all possessions in and around 4 Privet Drive once the fire was put out. Thankfully he'd only been transformed for about ten minutes and then a gold diamond on the salamander's chest, which Harry hadn't noticed until the end there, began beeping with a warning red light and moments after that there'd been a blinding flash of red light and then Harry Potter was standing there, same as ever. He'd then moved his trunk and his owl to across the street and then went to Mrs. Figg's house, the lady down the street with all the cats, and called the fire department.

Fortunately, or not, Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley had all made it safely out of the house before it became an inferno, just needing to be looked over by the paramedics for smoke inhalation, and the fire trucks arrived in time to keep the fire from spreading to the other houses in the neighborhood, but nothing could be done to save the house itself. The Dursley's were left with nothing but their pajamas, as all documents had been left in Vernon's study on the second floor... and _not_ in a fireproof safe either.

Harry, amidst all this had managed to slip away in the confusion.

He wasn't stupid. No matter what made the Dursley's keep him around for all these years instead of giving him up for adoption, or whatever, _nothing_ could possibly make them accept him back into their home after this. His home didn't even exist anymore, so there was nothing to do as the Dursley's and he would never live in the same home ever again, not if Vernon had anything to say about it in any case.

At that moment, as 11-year-old Harry Potter walked off into the night with only a trunk, a caged owl, and a magical armband that turned him into magical creatures, hundreds of miles to the north all manner of magical instruments started going crazy driving their owner into a wild panic.

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In the weeks that followed, for the last month of summer vacation, Harry had quite a few adventures. Primarily, of course, because he was officially a runaway, and potentially an arsonist since he had, technically speaking, burnt down the house that he was never going back to.

The night of, he'd made it as far as the park a few blocks away from Privet drive before stopping and apologizing to the owl he named Hedwig for the lack of proper accommodations. She seemed to understand and was sympathetic towards him. At least she returned after he let her out to hunt for the night.

For half the night he just sat there on the swings just thinking, trying to figure out what to do now. He was only eleven years old, and _just_ that as it was now coming up on midnight of his eleventh birthday! He wasn't old enough, wasn't prepared to be out on his own so suddenly like this!

He needed a plan. Actually, he revised, he needed some place to spend the night or just some place to live. Sure, he could go to Hogwarts like Hagrid told him about, and it seemed the friendly giant lived there all year round anyway, but not until September 1st and that was a whole month away!

He didn't have any friends... well at all, but certainly none where he could spend the night or thirty. Besides, once the Dursley's got their composure back in place (his aunt had been crying her eyes out staring at her destroyed garden last time he saw her) they would make sure no one that he might even know of would take him in. So where did homeless people go? Besides living on the street like Vernon always complained about.

Shelters. Homeless shelters, he remembered hearing about them on the news once or twice. But he didn't know where any of them were nor how to get to them!

Harry looked down at his wrist and raised an eyebrow in thought.

Since this thing had gotten him into this mess, maybe it could get him out of it somehow?

Hesitantly, Harry brought his wand back out and tapped the band again. It had stayed a warning-red for about twenty minutes after he'd changed back and then finally gone back to its normal appearance. Now, it turned the same yellow-gold that it had when he'd looked at it before. He spent some minutes cycling through the silhouettes now with greater understanding of what they meant and what the band could do. He still didn't fully understand it, but he could figure out that when he activated it, he would transform into whatever creature was in silhouette in the crystal's image.

At roughly the same time Harry was sitting in the park alone, back at Privet Drive, a visitor arrived at Mrs. Figg's home. Albus Dumbledore appeared out of the night at the end of Privet Drive, much as he had ten years before, the crack of his arrival lost in all the commotion of the disaster that had only ended a short time before. He wasted no time walking past the smoldering heap where number four used to be only to determine that the wards placed there had fallen with no hope of being restored before moving on to his friend's home down the street.

"Where is he Arabella?" the silver-haired wizard said the moment he was through the door. "Where is Harry? Hagrid assured me that everything went five this afternoon!"

"I don't know, I'm sorry Albus," the distraught woman wailed. "He came in only a few hours ago and called the fire brigade! Then once they arrived and all this noise and confusion and my cats panicking and everything... I lost track of him and when next I turned around... he was gone!"

"Not to worry Arabella," Dumbledore worked to calm the crying squib. "Thankfully I do have means to find Harry quickly in case anything untoward should happen. I brought it with me just in case." He pulled out a small silver device that looked like a fancy compass except the needles did not point north. "It will take me only a moment to set it and then we can find Harry and reunite him with his relatives. Then it is most urgent we get them all to safe housing before the dark forces can discover the loss of the defenses."

At the same time the wizard and squib were working to find him, back in the park Harry had finally decided on the form he wanted to choose. There were three that looked almost identical to each other, but he felt that they were actually different creatures that just all happened to have similar silhouettes. He chose the first one of those, it kind of looked like a really big man with large arms and spiky hair. The other two were just as big, but one had a bald head and the others arms weren't nearly so big.

Taking a deep breath, Harry tapped his wand against the glowing crystal and felt the change as he was blinded by the flash of yellow-gold light. This time instead of heat, he felt cold so intense that he forgot what hot was for a second! The rest of it wasn't as strange as changing into the fire salamander, mostly because he was keeping the same human shape, two arms two legs a head and body. He was getting bigger though. The cold was the strangest part of it though by far as it felt like he had ice growing all over him starting at the arm where the band was until it reached and covered his head and eyes. When it had consumed him entirely, he looked down at himself with ice-blue eyes and saw that he now had ice-white skin, a black leather tunic covering his torso with matching boots covering his feet, frozen crystals for hair, and stood between ten and fifteen feet in height with matching width to make up his bulk.

"Whoa," he said in a booming, window-shaking voice as he looked down at himself.

Meanwhile, back at Mrs. Figg's house, Dumbledore's device suddenly started spinning madly the moment he activated it, and then exploded in the old wizard's hands. He spent the next hour investigating the remains but had no clue as to what could have caused that to happen. It was a simple device that tracked down a person, similar to the Point-Me charm, but more reliable. He'd built it himself and keyed it to Harry's magical signature. The only fathomable reason for it to explode was if Harry's magical signature had expanded to giant levels in the space of the same few seconds when Dumbledore activated it. Of course, Dumbledore had no way of knowing that Harry even now stood _as_ a giant in the park only a block or two away. A Frost Giant, but a giant nevertheless.

After a few moments experimentation he found that while he still felt that all-encompassing cold, it didn't really bother him that much. He also found that he could transfer that cold to other things, kind of like that Iceman character he'd read about in Dudley's comics. He could also, after wishing he wasn't so massive and noticeable, that he could change his size. Unfortunately, there seemed to be a limit to how small he could get, but thankfully also on how big he could get too.

Finally, he settled with standing at just over seven feet and managed not to freeze his trunk solid when he picked it up. About seven minutes later though, he noticed that the same diamond crystal was set up as some kind of pendant on the black leather tunic and that it began beeping with the same red-warning light that had preceded his change back to normal before. It gave him enough warning to get out of sight, as he'd run all the way back to the Underground station, just in time before he returned to normal.

After that, Harry felt very tired and not surprisingly as it had been a very busy day and it was past midnight already. He spent a few moments debating on whether to get on a train or not, but he didn't really have anywhere to go.

At just that moment, luck would have it that an old plumber happened to be passing by the very moment that Harry stepped out of the alcove that he'd hidden in to change back. The old man was wearing a red Hawaiian shirt and gray pants, his hair silver but his face shaved clean. He witnessed the scene and almost couldn't believe his eyes, but a second look told him he wasn't seeing things. He certainly wasn't the type of man that would leave any ten-year-old boy in an oversized sweater, jeans, carrying a trunk and snowy white owl alone on the subway platform in the middle of the night on the outskirts of downtown London.

"Hey kid," he called out, his American accent rather noticeable amidst the background.

The skinny dark haired boy looked up, startled and almost bolted but stopped himself. The old plumber smiled and held up his hands non-threateningly. "Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to help. Are you lost? Where are your parents?"

Harry hesitated, unsure as to whether he should trust this stranger, but to be honest he didn't have a lot of options for the moment. Finally he answered, "I-I don't have any parents sir. They're dead. They died when I was just a baby. I... I don't have anywhere to go..."

The old man stared at him, and then sighed. Shaking his head tiredly he knelt down so they were face-to-face. "My name is Max. Max Tennyson. I'd like to help you out, if you're willing to let me. I don't suppose you have family that you can..."

"They don't want me. They'd... they'd never let me back after tonight," Harry said all in a rush.

Max looked confused, then asked, "What happened? It can't be that bad, and they are you're family..."

Harry determinedly shook his head. "I... I burned the house down. But I didn't mean to! It was an accident! And Uncle Vernon, he was coming at me with a broom and then a bat and I panicked and they've always called me a freak so I know that..."

"Whoa whoa whoa, calm down," Max tried to comfort the boy by putting his hands on his shoulders. "It's all right. I'm sure it wasn't your fault. Tell you what, why don't you come with me and you can get some rest. Here, I'll take that." He picked up the trunk with the owl's cage on top of it. "And who's this? She's beautiful. What's her name?" he commented about the snowy white owl inside.

"Hedwig," Harry replied, following along beside the friendly man. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it. Kindness is it's own reward I always say," Max said with a shrug and a smile. He hid his real thoughts on the monsters that were Harry's relatives. Anyone that treated a child like that deserved to be put away for a very long time. "So kid, what's your name? Or should I ask Hedwig here?"

Harry smiled and laughed. "Harry, sir. Harry Potter."

Max raised an eyebrow but just smiled and nodded, saying, "Nice to meet you Harry. We're just up ahead," he pointed towards their destination. Harry turned and saw the oldest, most worn, aged motor home on four wheels than anyone alive had ever seen. Max called it the "Rust Bucket" and the name certainly seemed to fit. Harry thought it was the best thing he'd ever seen in his whole life!

"Ah," Max said as he helped Harry inside the vehicle, "These are my grandchildren. Ben and Gwen Tennyson. They're cousins by the way."

"Grandpa! How much longer do we have to be in this rainy city anyway?" the brown-haired green eyed boy in white and black striped shirt whined. "It's worse than Seattle with the weather and at least we had some _fun_ there! Hey, who's this?"

"Way to go doofus!" the green-eyed redhead in a blue cat shirt snapped at her cousin. "Hi, sorry about the pea-brain over there. I'm Gwen. It's nice to meet you." She smiled and greeted the young boy that looked to be their own age.

Harry blinked, then smiled and accepted the girl's greeting. "I'm Harry. Harry Potter. It's brilliant to meet you. I, uh..."

"Grandpa, why'd you bring home some kid with a funky accent?" Ben asked while eyeballing Harry.

Harry wasn't sure whether or not to be insulted, but glancing down he saw the crystal on the band go from red to normal and he couldn't help smiling at the swell of confidence that he suddenly had the power to defend himself and didn't have to take anymore crap from anybody. He certainly wasn't about to go back to being the bullied after having just escaped the reach of the Dursley's and Dudley especially.

"From my perspective it's you who has the funny accent," he snapped back at Ben.

"Oh I like you already," Gwen smiled friendly at Harry.

"HEY!" Ben yelled.

"That's enough," Max stopped the fight before it could begin. "Harry here needs some help and we're going to give it to him. Ben, given your hospitality I think Harry can sleep in your bunk for the night. You can bunk with me... or Gwen."

"Eww! And risk getting cooties! I don't think so! Hey, how come I have to give up my bunk? Why not Gwen? Let Hairy risk getting cooties from her stuff!" Ben argued. Max just smiled and said, "On second thought, why don't you take the couch for the night. Might do you some good to remember the manners I've been trying to teach you all summer long."

Ben gulped and wisely kept his mouth shut after that.

TBC...?


	35. Missing Hokage: San

Title:The Missing Hokage : San

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:Naruto is published by Shounen Jump Magazine, and the creator doesn't know what to do with his own creation so instead of hiring Ghost Writers to make it more interesting, he "focuses" on other characters that nobody cares about. This story is in response to Perfect Lionheart's "Missing Hokage" challenge.

Summary:One Year Later. Naruto, and everyone else on Team Hokage are traveling around helping people and making enough to rival most Hidden Villages. Naruto is near Jounin level, but to face what is to come, he must undergo special training and begin something that no one could have expected.

AN: Since in the manga (nor anime) Shizune's surname has not been given yet, I have given her the same surname as the Japanese Voice Actress that does her voice in the original anime. Just FYI.

San: Inspiration

In Kaminari no kuni, in the foothills that border between the center of the country and the next of the elemental nations, a fierce battle was taking place. A battle the likes of which were seen more and more often these days.

"HAH! So this is the infamous _Team Hokage_?! HAH!!" a rough-skinned brute wearing a Kumo headband that had a slash across the symbol screamed as he twirled his spear in one hand. "I'm not impressed!"

His name was Taiyou Shun, and he was a nukenin from Kumogakure. He was only about five and three-quarter feet tall, though his spiky blue-gray hair made him seem taller sometimes. He had medium-brown skin and coal-black eyes and kept himself clean-shaven. He wore sleeveless black and gray armor and wielded a seven foot pole-arm that he identified as the _Ikazuchiyuri_, the Spear of Thunder. It had a solid-black pole and was capped with a ribbed double-edged foot-and-a-half-long golden spear point, which as they had already discovered, was an excellent conductor for lightning chakra and the rogue could shoot out blasts of raw lightning at them from a distance.

Team Hokage; aka Senju Tsunade, Nemoto Shizune, Hyuuga Hinata, Kaito Shi, Uchiha Sasuke, and Uzumaki Naruto, were on a 'simple' bounty hunter mission, offered to them by none other than the Daimyo of Kaminari no kuni!

Apparently, Shun had cut ties with Kumo roughly six months ago, and has since then been systematically attacking key trade routes between Kaminari and some of it's less friendly allies, making it look like either Kumo, and thus the Raikage, were trying to start a war, or making the Lightning Daimyo look weak by making it seem he couldn't control his own backyard.

When Tsunade, after he'd offered them the job, asked him about Kumo's Hunternin tracking Shun down, he grumbled for a bit and finally admitted that _apparently_ they were still searching for him and were working to find him as quickly as possible, but the Raikage had been telling him that for the past six months with no progress, beyond continued reports of attacks on trade routes, to show for it.

"Get them men! I'll soften them up for you first!" Shun cried in sadistic glee, firing off a couple lightning blasts, forcing the team to dive for cover. Oh, and apparently, he also joined up with a group of bandits and mercenaries and very quickly became their leader.

"Crap!" Tsunade cursed as they scattered behind what cover they could, most of it rocks from the rubble of previous lightning blasts. "We need to take out that spear! Sooner, rather than later! Naruto! You and Shi take care of the mercs! The rest of us will cover you! Sasuke, start planning on how to take out that spear!"

"Do I get to keep it?" the normally broody youth asked back.

"WHAT?!" Tsunade screamed, incredulous.

"Naruto, or you, or even Hinata get first pick at the artifacts or the scrolls we find most of the time. The bounty is for Taiyou Shun only, not his weapon. Which means we can claim it as a spoil of battle," the Uchiha coolly stated. "Do I get the spear?" His question was further enforced by another blast exploding dangerously close to their hiding spot right at that moment.

"GAH! We don't have _time_ for this Uchiha!" she screamed at him, murder in her eyes.

"Do I get it or not?" he insisted, looking like he'd just as soon cross his arms and legs and sit there pouting for the rest of the day until he either got his way or was killed.

Near growling, Tsunade clenched her fist and made to punch some sense into the arrogant chuunin, when Naruto sidled up to their hiding spot, having littered the battlefield with enough clones to thoroughly distract Shun and his mercenaries.

"Let him have it, Obaa-chan," the younger blond said, then shrugged. "I've already got the True Raijin, and he's right about me and Hinata getting first pick of any treasure we find. Besides, Sasuke's the only one of us with lightning affinity. He'd be the only one that _could_ use it!"

Tsunade frowned, looked between the boys for half a second, then sighed and rolled her eyes. Finally she growled out, "Fine! _IF_ you can get your grubby hands on it Uchiha, that spear is all yours. NOW TAKE THAT BASTARD OUT!"

"Yes ma'am," Sasuke saluted with a grin, then jumped over their barricade with Naruto right behind.

"I'll take care of the rest of them," Naruto said, forming a familiar cross-seal, several dozen shadow clones formed in his wake and quickly spread out stealthily around the battlefield. "We'll have this wrapped up in no time, Baa-chan!"

"If only..." she rolled her eyes.

"_CHIDORI_!" Sasuke's cry went out and there was a blue/black flash across the ground, even as there were several explosions around it, Shun kept missing until the lightning element assassination jutsu slammed into his chest, going through the armor the nukenin wore.

"_Fuuton: Senpuuken_!" Naruto's and his clones shouts came around the same moment and there were explosions of wind and dust as controlled cyclones dispatched almost all of the remainder of Shun's bandit army. The remainder were taken care of by Shi and Hinata rounding them up and quickly knocking them out on their own.

Before Tsunade had even fully come out of hiding, the battle was over and the bandits all tied up and Shun's corpse was cooling at Sasuke's heels while the Uchiha twirled about his new weapon. The Sannin sighed and rolled her eyes. '_Typical, just typical_,' she thought to herself. '_A-Rank Assassination contract, and all of them are treating it like the average C-Rank Bandit Hunting mission. I need a drink!_'

"All right, enough!" the busty blonde shouted once she was sure the danger had passed. "Begin clean-up. Shi, you observe alongside Naruto, Hinata you supervise sealing the bodies, UCHIHA PUT THAT THING AWAY!! Naruto, you know what you have to do. Any problems... you know where to find me."

The four youths all chuckled at that statement, driving another tick mark into Tsunade's skull.

"It's her own fault," Naruto shrugged to his friends, absently creating a legion of shadow clones that began to scour the landscape, collecting weapons, clearing debris, filling potholes in the road, things like that. "She keeps insisting on coming on these easy missions! Always insisting that it's too dangerous. When the really dangerous missions are those ones that she and Shizune-neechan call 'cakewalks'! You'd think she'd know better by now!"

"Well..." Shi started to say but was interrupted.

"Ano, Naruto-kun," Hinata spoke, "This was an A-Rank style mission. The target was a jounin with a highly unique weapon that no other in the world has. Or rather _had_," she added, seeing Sasuke finally put the spear away. "The 'cakewalk' missions, on the other hand were all C-Rank escort, protection, and delivery missions. Normally, those missions are much less dangerous than any A-Rank mission."

"Yeah, but..." Shi tried again, but was too slow.

"Except that each of those missions turned out to be miss-ranked!" Naruto exclaimed. "Nine times out of thirteen, in escort missions that we've taken, the client has lied about his importance or neglected to mention he's got a bounty on his head! Protection missions are the same way, as something or someone that is _supposed_ to only be C-Rank in value is actually A-Rank or above! And don't get me started on the delivery missions!"

"He's got a point," Sasuke observed , even as he casually ripped off the head of the target's corpse before sealing the rest of the body into a scroll for later autopsy and analysis. The head was purely for identification purposes and proof that they completed the mission.

"Then there are all the times that I give you guys advice and warnings before going on those missions," Shi snapped, crossing his arms angrily after being ignored.

The three younger members of Team Hokage stopped for a second before giving a collective shrug and acknowledging the truth in that statement. They certainly weren't about to deny it, especially after Shi could, at times, give them more thorough information about their missions than their clients ever could. And that was the point Naruto was trying to make.

"Yeah!" Naruto agreed with him. "Those ones that Obaa-chan is calling cakewalks are the ones where we aren't given the info we need to complete the mission, there's all this hiding and secrets and stuff. We just need to know what to expect and we're all good. Thanks for the outline on this guys capabilities by the way, Shi! Sasuke probably wouldn't have gotten close without it."

"Actually, _you_ would have tried to take him head on and nearly gotten yourself killed in the process," Shi grinned at the blond mockingly. "Need I remind you..."

"Yes, yes, yes," Sasuke sighed, exasperated. "Your powers of premonition saved us all again. Are you two going to just chatter all day, or are you going to help out?"

In silent reply, Shi and Naruto both pointed to the horde of shadow clones scouring the battlefield, collecting the bodies, weapons and everything else needed to clear the site of their battle. Sasuke rolled his eyes and went to join Hinata in sealing up the other remains.

It was a tactic that they'd started doing about five months after leaving Konoha. A good ninja learns what to look for when analyzing potential opponents. From the way a person walks, holds their tools or weapons, to the way they react to sudden noises or specific information, all of it can be used in analyzing the way a ninja fights and countless more facets. Likewise, the same way an animal leaves tracks in the forest to identify its behavior, one can look at the site of a ninja battle and learn more than those ninja would be comfortable anybody learning about them.

Shi had suggested it a full month beforehand, but it wasn't until Team Hokage was attacked by another team of ninja that knew _precisely_ how to handle each of them so that they were defeated in minutes. Tsunade and Sasuke had both accused Shi of hiring the enemy ninja, until they confronted their captors and found out that they'd been following Tsunade's group around and learned all about them with very subtle investigations. After that, they made sure that any time any member of the group had a full on ninja battle that wasn't staged in some way, that site was cleaned up so that it appeared as if they'd never been there in the first place.

After seven more months, it had become habitual for them by this point.

"That everything?" Naruto asked when Hinata and Sasuke joined him and Shi on the rocks.

"I don't know, is it?" Sasuke snapped back at him, annoyed at having to carry all the dead-body scrolls.

Shi suddenly frowned and pulled out a notepad. He flipped through it for about a minute before stopping on a specific page and read it while the others watched on. He handed the notepad to Naruto and asked, "Did they get that?"

Naruto looked and saw a small diagram of an unmarked Kumo hitai-ate. There was a caption under the diagram, reading, "Nukenin Spare Hitai-ate = Kumo ANBU Hunternin = ???" Naruto shot Shi a look, then glanced back to his clones and turned around to where Sasuke had slain their target. He walked over himself and then knelt down before clearing away some loose pebbles and dust and came up with the unmarked headband. He held it up and tossed it to Sasuke.

"We really don't need Kumo tailing us," he commented, handing the notepad back to Shi. "Thanks Shi. That _should_ be everything now, right?" He got nods all around and nodded back himself. "Then let's go join Obaa-chan and Shizune-neechan, OK?"

"Hai!" Hinata immediately agreed, taking Naruto by the arm and leading him away, leaving Shi and Sasuke to follow along carrying all their packs and 'evidence' of their battle.

_Capitol of Kaminari no Kuni_

_Lightning Daimyo's Castle_

_Five Days Later_

"Ah, excellent, excellent!" the thin and pale ruler of the Country of Lightning exclaimed once he saw the whole of Team Hokage upon entering the room. "I trust everything went well? You've found Taiyou Shun then?"

Tsunade smirked, her eyes twinkling as she nodded her head. She pulled out a very specific scroll and set it before the Damiyo. "Indeed, Damiyo-sama," she answered. "It was hardly any trouble at all. We merely went to the area where the attacks were being reported, and waited for Taiyou to show himself. I assure you, you will no longer have to worry about attacks from this particular group of bandits along your borders ever again. Now then, about the bounty..."

"Ah yes," the Damiyo nodded his head towards a nearby servant, who then carried in a small chest.

Tsunade's eyes flashed hungrily as she opened the chest and smiled brightly at the lord before her.

"Thank you. Everything looks in order here. If there's anything else that I can do for you, my lord, please don't hesitate to ask. Team Hokage always respects a client who is as generous as you have been. You know where to reach us, I'm sure," Tsunade closed the chest and handed it back to Shizune.

"Of course, of course," the Damiyo waved his hand like it was nothing. "I am curious however, are the rumors true? About your group, and about you? That it's no coincidence that you are Team _Fire Shadow_, but that one of you actually was the Hokage of Konoha once upon a time?"

Tsunade's smile became a little more forced, but didn't change by one inch. "You know how rumors are, my lord. They can be a truthful and as fictitious as the difference between a report and a script for a movie. We tend to discourage the more... fictitious rumors, don't we? After all, just because most of us hail from the Country of Fire and the coincidence of our team's name, is no reason to jump to conclusions. Besides, what if I told you I'd heard a rumor that you were gay? HAH HAH HAH HAH!" Tsunade roared out in laughter, though the Damiyo chuckled uncomfortably, she was the only one laughing. "Now that's just plain silly, isn't it? See how rumors are silly like that, my lord?" her tone changed from laughing to serious in a heartbeat.

"Uh, yes," the Lightning Damiyo gulped and nodded his head. Getting to his feet, he said as he left, "Very well then. This concludes our business, and based on your performance, I may call on you again some day. But for now... well, the rest of your payment will be met out by my attendants as you leave. Thank you again for your hard work, and have a good journey!" He scrambled out of the room so fast, some of them wondered if he hadn't had ninja training in escape and evasion.

"How'd you know he was gay?" Naruto asked thoughtlessly as they walked out of the palace.

"He's not," Tsunade cackled, "He's actually homophobic. We were actually exchanging threats on me spreading false rumors about him if the rumors about me were confirmed as anything _other_ than rumors."

"Oh," the blond scratched his head, still confused.

"Don't worry about it, Naruto-kun," Hinata sidled up next to the young man to comfort him.

"Are we almost done here?" Sasuke questioned irritably.

"Almost," Shi hinted, then surreptitiously side-stepped just as a man dressed as a ninja, though with no identifying marks, came forward and approached Tsunade.

"I hate it when he does that," the buxom blond hissed under her breath, turning her attention to the ninja before her. "Can I help you?"

"I am Kenun Kumoashi," the man bowed low before the former Hokage. "I am hoping that you are the prestigious Team Hokage? And you are the leader, Senju Tsunade, Sannin and once Hokage of Konoha, yes?"

Tsunade frowned and crossed her arms over her considerable chest, driving the man to further distraction, then asked, "How did you find us?"

"I am a wandering soul, looking for work. I get it where I can, and my former village, while not hunting me, has exiled me for... political reasons. I have been a mercenary for several years now and one does not travel in such circles these days without hearing of the infamous Team Hokage. I had only just completed a mission for another of the nobles in this city yesterday when I heard that you were in the area and that you have just completed a mission for the Lightning Damiyo. I am wondering... is there a chance that I might join your group, even if only for a short while..."

"No," she snapped, before this could get out of hand.

Shi, Hinata, Naruto, and Sasuke all walked past, looking the ninja up and down as they went by. Behind his back, so only Shizune and Tsunade could see, all four of them shook their heads no, while Shi made the hand sign for 'Spy'. Shizune stayed by Tsunade's side however.

"But you haven't even..." the ninja tried again, but stopped when the blond landed him with a glare that made Orochimaru take pause.

"Team Hokage is not hiring. Since our formation, we have only accepted one addition and he was there for our first mission so you might consider him also being there during our formation. No matter what the name, what the skill, tell your village, your boss, or whoever you're working for, that we are not hiring and not for sale either. You should leave now before I lose my patience with you."

Shaking now, he just nodded agreement and quickly ran away in the opposite direction.

"That was uncharacteristically kind of you, Tsunade-sama," Shizune remarked as they went to catch up to the rest of the team.

"Was it?" she looked over at her first apprentice.

"He's still able to walk away under his own power," the brunette laughed.

"I think you mean 'run away'," Tsunade joined in the laughter.

"That's the seventh 'offer' to join our group in the past month alone," Sasuke commented once the adults had caught up with them. "And, according to Shi, over half of them have been planted spies, although we never found out for who."

"Do we have to?" Shi scoffed.

"He's right," Shizune commented. "We're an independent group of high level ninja that take on an entire range of jobs, most of them A and S rank, nearly impossible without more than a dozen fully trained ninja. And we number only half that. The fact that we haven't reported failure on any mission that we have accepted also makes us more mysterious. Every hidden village and Kage and ninja organization is going to want as much information about us as possible. Why do you think we started cleaning up after battles?"

"Because Shi told us to?" Sasuke sarcastically snapped back.

"Because Shi pointed out a weakness that needed correcting," Tsunade stressed. "The fact that none of these organizations or villages have gotten a spy or other source of information about us is driving them crazy. Not a surprise really, to see them sending so many new faces our way. It's the way the ninja world works."

"So why don't we have our own spy network?" Sasuke asked.

"We do," Tsunade, Shi and Naruto all said at once.

"How do you know about that?" Naruto asked Shi.

Shi just grinned and walked on.

"Know about what?" Sasuke growled, feeling mistrust because there was something Naruto had successfully hidden from him.

"I've got transformed shadow clones in ever single country and hidden village we've ever visited," Naruto shrugged. "They only last a couple of weeks, but you'd be surprised how easy it is to replace them so long as you've got the chakra for it. Plus, they can eat and make chakra of their own, but eventually they do run out. I've even got a few back in Konoha, been keeping in touch with Ero-sennin."

"And whose idea was this?" Hinata asked knowingly.

"Obaa-chan's," Naruto said.

"Mine," Tsunade said at the same time.

"That makes sense," Sasuke admitted, having been privately impressed with the idea, but was reluctant to say as much. "It's an actually good idea. I'd been worried that Naruto had been replaced by an actually competent ninja."

"Hah. Hah. Hah," Naruto glowered at the Uchiha.

"So, where to next?" Tsunade asked out loud. She then turned and looked right at Shi.

"Are you sure?" he asked her after noticing the Sannin staring at him.

"I've been putting off on listening to you explain how your powers of insight work for long enough, and you've been asking us to head back to _Hi no Kuni_ for the past few weeks. As it is, we don't have any other missions lined up right now, so we might as well listen to what you've got to say. After all, we wouldn't want to step on a crack and break the world in two now," Tsunade jested.

Shi winced.

"I really wish you hadn't used that particular phrase, but I understand your reluctance to listen to me prattle on about things I'm not a hundred percent sure on. Plus, my... talents, aren't what you'd call standard. At least with the Sharingan and the Byakugan, when they 'see the future' it only counts for the next few seconds and detailing an opponent's reactions. Can't exactly test something that deals with possible futures on a worldwide scale, can you?" he replied.

"Shi already explained about his powers work, Obaa-chan," Naruto stated. "He draws or writes stuff that may or may not come true. The stuff that doesn't come true are at least warnings on how to avoid the worse stuff. Plus, he always has the right advice at the right time for us!"

"I'm not denying that," Tsunade admitted, "But that doesn't explain why you suddenly want us to return to the country where Naruto has been exiled from, Shi. I'm looking forward to _that_ explanation very much."

"Heh, yeah, me too," the youth said, looking like he was anything but.

"So where _are_ we going anyway?" Naruto asked after a bit of uncomfortable silence.

"I'm... not sure, but we need to go there," was all Shi could say. "It's nowhere near Konoha by the way. More in the southeastern portion of Hi no Kuni, at the neck of the peninsula. There's a small grouping of mountains there, more like rocky hills really. That's our general direction. For now."

The rest of the team didn't look happy with so little information, but after so long dealing with Shi's 'warnings' and 'advice', they knew better than to argue. When he had more information, he'd share it with them.

_Konoha_

_Hokage's Office_

It had been a trying year for the Sixth Hokage. Or, to be more accurate, it had been a very trying year for Konoha, and a frustrating one for Jiraiya! Mostly because of the fact that since he was Hokage, he couldn't go off and do all the research he'd gotten used to, nor could he wander the countryside and have fun playing the spy game, research included. Oh, there was more than enough eye-candy all over Konoha these days, but variety is the spice of life as they say.

Still, there was more to Jiraiya's and Konoha's troubles than mere boredom.

First of all, all of Jiraiya's laws and changes to old laws and traditions and then the punishment system he created and had ANBU enforce; the coed hot springs, the changes to the Ninja Academy, hell even the uniforms, all of that worked out fine and was easily accepted, even appreciated by a few of the more bold citizens of the Hidden Village. The new class of punishment D-Rank and public humiliations however, well there had been two riots; the first of half the civilian population, the female half, and then the second was from half of the entire population of Konoha, again the female half. All of the kunoichi, even members of ANBU participated in that one.

The first riot was to be expected, what with Jiraiya making his book of porn, (Hey, he may be a super-pervert, but that doesn't make him anal! He writes porn and he knows it!), mandatory reading for minors, and authorizing very vagrant advertisement displays for his new books to be put up all over town, rather than in their usual discretionary spots here and there had pissed the women off something fierce!

The second riot however, that almost started a civil war between men and women right there. Unfortunately, it just so happened to coincide with the latest physical reports of all the female ninja of the village, and it was found out, as to be expected, that over 90 percent of them were now pregnant. The less than 10 percent was the very few number that were newly minted genin or were still too young for that sort of thing. As in biologically too young.

Standard practice is that if a ninja becomes incapacitated due to medical reasons they're no longer allowed to go on long-term out-of-village missions. The timing could have been better, he had to admit, but nobody was upset that all of the female ninja of appropriate age _were_ pregnant. That was something everyone was ecstatically happy about. What pissed everyone off was that he'd forced all of them to go on the restricted mission access the minute the physical results came back in.

Most of them weren't even three weeks along yet! They still had at least another month before they became incapacitated in any way, and there were C and B rank missions that held relatively low risk, not to mention his new A-Rank Escort Class missions, which again could be participated in so long as they weren't showing or dealing with other problems of pregnancy.

He and a number of the 'old crowd' felt that it was still too dangerous with their next generation of ninja, or civilians or whatever, to risk sending expecting mothers out on potentially lethal missions. Hell, Jiraiya had argued with a number of his personal advisers amongst the jounin and chuunin; Team Seven on their first C-Rank mission turned into an A-Rank overnight and it was a simple, _standard_ protection mission to a nearby country that was less than three days walk from Konoha itself! A three-day _WALK_!

Then the villagers started shouting in the streets and so Jiraiya's restriction was temporarily rescinded, in certain and very specific cases. And speaking of his new style of Escort missions, that was another thing that twisted a lot of panties into knots. The fact that Jiraiya made it completely equal, sending as many men, sometimes even twice as many as women on these types of mission made no difference to the hard-liners. While nobody rioted, he was receiving some very harsh criticisms from just about everybody.

That was only the beginning though.

Mission success/fail ratios were dropping and rising like the waves of the ocean during a typhoon. He tried mapping out where they were falling flat on their faces, but it was all over the map! In fact, the only correlation that he could fathom was in the experience and age of the ninjas that failed and those that succeeded. The older chuunin and jounin were reporting 30:70 success/fail, while the latest genin and very recently promoted chuunin were reporting in at 85:15 _on average_! 70 percent failure rate! It was unbelievable!

The problem really came in attitude, he finally had to admit. The older generation was tired and they'd just gone through another change of leadership, less than a year after having lost the Third Hokage, and now they've got to deal with the super-pervert _Sixth_ Hokage!

The younger generation, _Naruto's generation_ on the other hand, were eager to prove themselves and fought for the ideals that their exiled friend had showed them before being sent away. There was also the fact that Jiraiya usually sent out the genin/chuunin teams to intercept and interact with a new organization that had been working around the Elemental Nations for the past year; Team Hokage.

Jiraiya had made initial contact with his apprentice and Tsunade shortly before they stopped that Kurosuki Family in that mountain village, and after that he'd been able to occasionally send out, or leave behind, a shadow clone so he could meet up with his godson occasionally. He'd also finally been able to remove that damned cursed seal from the Uchiha's neck and the boy was better for it in the long run. No more corrupted chakra anyway.

When he couldn't meet with them directly, he would send out either Team Asuma, Team Kurenai, Team Gai, or some combination therein. He tried, once, to send Kakashi and Sakura as long-term field agents and contacts between Konoha and Team Hokage, but Kakashi was late and Sakura, well she had outright refused, saying she was too busy training to accept such a mission. It was the seal she had revealed on the underside of her tongue that kept Jiraiya from ever asking her again. Only one person in the world would use _that specific_ seal in such a way. Danzo. Which meant that Sakura, whether intentionally or not, had fallen in with Root.

Not good.

Not to mention very frustrating in the grand scheme of things, he had to admit to himself.

Beyond all the problems however, there was plenty of good things going on too. Besides the news about the sooner-than-expected arrival of the next generation, life was good, safety and security were assured, and missions and profits were up for the village. The audit by the Fire Lord's personal accountant had shown that there had been a number of corrupt individuals that had been 'skimming from the top' for quite a while. Unfortunately, to Jiraiya's mounting frustration, none of that could be tied directly back to Danzo. The ones Jiraiya had been sure were supplying Danzo with laundered money had confessed that they were alone in their endeavors and the bill stopped with them.

Ibiki had them for a week each before they finally broke. The second they started to speak, before the first syllable could even be uttered, they choked and died on their own vomit. Jiraiya still hadn't been able to find a way to _safely_ remove those damned seals Danzo put on all his people just yet. There was a way, but it involved cutting out their tongues. Rather pointless, all said and done.

The really good news was that quality of education was going up and Jiraiya expected this next generation of ninja to be more prepared for the world than the last three generations combined! Of course having active chuunin coming in and cycling through regularly to teach classes was a big part in helping that along, not to mention all the remedial training that dropouts and failures were getting. At this point, the Hokage had argued to all involved, Konoha needed numbers as well as quality. There were too many losses to make up for and with the loss of the last Uchiha and the son of the Fourth Hokage, not to mention the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, the _quality_ of Konoha's ninja weren't enough to cover that either.

Unfortunately, there were no _exceptional_ cases. At least not for another year or so, when Konohamaru, the Third Hokage's grandson, and Hanabi, the current and only heir to the Main Branch of the Hyuuga, finally graduated. They had the potential to be as exceptional as Naruto and his father were. The rest, well the term was 'standard shinobi' and they would be getting that in spades for the next year and a half, at least.

Of course, and Jiraiya allowed himself a small grin at this thought, thanks to his _exacting_ standards of shinobi fitness with weekly physicals and everything, 'standard shinobi' was becoming a pretty high standard.

Konoha's prosperity was on a rise, a slow rise, but still things were getting better after the hits they'd taken in recent years. That was obvious when one looked at the big picture and took in all the information from income to standard means of life around the village. Some people, however, couldn't see the big picture.

After Tsunade took office as Hokage, most everyone expected things to get better almost immediately, and they had. At least for the immediate. Tsunade had raised the standard of the medic-nin and had started putting in hours for both herself and her assistant Shizune at the Hospital. She'd also brought with her a certain reputation as being the granddaughter of the First Hokage, grand-niece of the Second Hokage, and genin-student of the Third Hokage. People put their trust and hope in her and because of that, people that might have criticized some of her decisions or her in general held their tongues as nobody bad-mouths the popular. Not unless they themselves want to become the automatic unpopular 'bad guys' that everyone talks about.

Jiraiya, on the other hand, while a well-known Sannin and student of the Third Hokage, was not near-royalty amongst the citizens of Konoha. Quite the opposite really, as the only thing he had going for him was his title and the well acknowledged fact that he was a seal-master. Beyond those simple facts, no one knew a damn thing about him, and the only time he spent in Konoha, or in Hi no Kuni at all, was spent spying on women in hot springs!

Thus, the criticisms that were held in check for Tsunade, had no such compulsion for the Sixth Hokage.

So when a year ago with Tsunade, someone came along and tried to raise the price of sake or even steal food or medical supplies, the Slug Sannin would punch him or have ANBU arrest him and hold him for interrogation, and everyone would praise her for it and even throw in their own punches and stuff. Now, when he the same thing happened, the people start complaining about the crime rate and if Jiraiya attacks or has ANBU arresting the criminal, he's called out for being too rough and a tyrant! Completely unfair, but that's life.

Therefore, all of Jiraiya's efforts on improving the status of life in his home town were seen as too harsh and perverted and nobody saw the changes as 'good', just more bad. To be honest though, he was getting ready to chuck the whole idea and let them take care of themselves for once.

Unfortunately, that was not a possibility. At least not as present...

Jiraiya's musings were cut short when an ANBU suddenly flashed in and silently handed the Hokage a sealed scroll. The ANBU in particular in conjunction with the seal placed on said scroll raised the man's concerns and after ensuring his privacy he opened the seal and began reading the scroll.

It took him ten minutes to fully react to it, though he'd read and deciphered it in less than one. "What the hell is she thinking? We weren't scheduled to meet for another two weeks! If any of the Council find out about them... no. Don't panic. Just because they've always managed to avoid crossing Konoha territory when going on long distance missions before doesn't mean this isn't just the same thing. But still, what would drive Team Hokage to enter back into Hi no Kuni from Kaminari no Kuni's border... and heading straight for the center mass of the country too? I've got to distract Danzo and his cronies somehow."

Jiraiya thought about it for a minute or two before smiling and writing up a report.

It had been hard work, harder still to make it so it wasn't known that he knew, but he'd finally been able to track down each and every one of Danzo's Root agents amongst the Konoha ninja population. There were, unfortunately, even more civilian agents, but in terms of daily ninja life they were just the ears and the eyes, not the weapons. Danzo could look and listen for Team Hokage all he wanted, Jiraiya just needed his 'weapons' kept away from them.

After he'd finished writing up his report, he began picking and choosing amongst the latest A and B rank missions that had come across his desk recently. The more juicier, and profitable missions he usually sent discreetly on to Team Hokage, but only every once in a while if he knew they weren't on one of their own missions, or a Pro Bono mission that Naruto or their friend liked to drag them on every now and again. The assassination and suicide missions, however, remained on Jiraiya's desk until a jounin of sufficient qualifications became available. And it just so happened that he suddenly had just such a mission for each and every one of the active Root ninja operating in Konoha. For the rest, well...

Jiraiya summoned another ANBU and handed the masked ninja a specially sealed scroll, to be handed directly to Ibiki, the head of the IT Division that answered directly to the Hokage. Before the day was out, Danzo would become the most watched and tracked individual in all of Hi no Kuni. Not even the Fire Damiyo with all his bodyguards and advisers and spies was so closely observed.

Such an action was twofold, though it might have later consequences he would come to regret, it fit with Jiraiya's current plans in distracting the old war hawk.

Now, he just had to figure out what Team Hokage was doing and whether or not it was a good thing...

_Southern Hi No Kuni_

_Uchuu Mountains_

_A Few Weeks Later_

"What is this place?" Naruto asked, his voice echoing against the stone walls that stood on all sides.

Team Hokage were in a hidden cavern deep within a box canyon valley in the mountains on the southern edge of the Nation of Fire. They'd been lead there by their honorary member, Kaito Shi, who claimed to have drawn a map to the place on a napkin from the last restaurant they'd stopped at. The fact that the map was 100 percent accurate and he had landscape portraits of a few of the scenes they'd come across merely kept them from going off on their own. Nothing could help the complaints though.

"I honestly don't know," Shi was forced to respond to Naruto's question. "I just know we're supposed to be here. Or... there to be more precise," he pointed to a pedestal-formation a hundred yards towards the center of the cavern.

"What's there?" Sasuke demanded, suspicious.

Shi only shrugged.

"You're the one that brought us here!" the Uchiha roared in the young man's face, "Don't you even know what we're supposed to be here for?!"

Shi sighed and rolled his eyes. Gesturing to some nearby boulders for them all to sit on. Once they were comfortable, he stood before them and started unsealing all manner of pieces of artwork and scrolls and other papers. "Once again, from the top," he said.

"I don't know how. I don't know why. I don't know who and I absolutely can't control where, what, or when, but I get flashes of inspiration, sometimes visions, sometimes just an idea that won't leave me alone. These flashes of inspiration _inspire_ me to draw," he gestured to the portraits he'd unsealed, "write," the scrolls, "and even create whatever it is." He pulled out a sculpture and a miniature model out of the scroll next.

"Let's start with these," he went to the paintings. "You've all seen them before. Konoha's Hokage monument with seven faces on it, Naruto's being one of them. Next to it, Konoha in ruins. Thanks to these," he held up about four different scrolls, "I can say with certainty that both of these paintings _were_ set for the same time period. Roughly five years from now. Seven when we first met."

"How is that possible? And what do the scrolls have to do with it?" Tsunade wanted to know.

He tossed them to her. "They're short-stories that I was working on before I met you. Two are parts one and two of Konoha's future when Uzumaki Naruto was the Sixth Hokage. They're the ones in the white ribbon." He waited while Tsunade quickly read through them, her eyes filled with tears of joy and a soft smile on her face. Once she closed the second scroll, he continued, "The ones with the black ribbon are what _really_ prompted me to seek you guys out, and I wrote after Naurto was officially exiled from Konoha. They go with the second painting."

Curious, despite her reluctance, Tsunade tentatively opened the aforementioned scrolls, and even faster than with the first set her eyes were filled with tears. Not of joy, but of fear, sadness and sheer horror. It was terrible and could best be described as a murder/war/horror novel, _IF_ it were fiction instead of things to come.

"I don't normally enjoy reading, or writing things like that, just so you know. I could regale you with all of the individual timelines I've written, drawn, and created in some form or another, but suffice it to say I keep seeing two extremes, the predominate _still_ being those two scrolls with the black ribbon. Maybe the details have changed here and there, but the overall picture is _still there_. The other extreme however, isn't this anymore," he pointed at the idealized Konoha with Naruto's face on the mountain. "It's this."

He pulled out the miniature model he'd unsealed earlier and put it before them. It was something the likes of which none of them had ever seen before. "This," he said, "is a brand new Hidden Village. I haven't been able to write an accompanying story. Yet, but I recognize it for what it is. See the central tower? All the walkways going out away from it and interconnecting with all the buildings and levels around it? The symbol etched into it? Not to mention the types of buildings all around it. I've been around and to enough Hidden Villages to know what one looks like."

"All right, say you're right," Tsunade said, "What does this have to do with us? And I don't recognize that symbol, what country is it aligned with?"

Shi shrugged again. "I told you, I haven't written a story about this yet. I've just seen the picture in my mind and I've been building this for the past four months in my free time. When you were off training your charges every couple of weeks."

"Ah," the blond nodded her head and sighed. "So which country has a pie for the symbol of it's ninja village then? You did say you've been around."

Shi looked closer at the model, then shook his head, "I don't think it's a pie. Yes, it's a circle with two crosses intersecting it, one at 30 degrees and the other at 90 degrees. Except..." he trailed off and looked around their current surroundings. "I don't think I reconstructed it perfectly. It's actually, supposed to look like that!" he pointed towards the pedestal and the stone carved symbol on the top of it. Which just so happened to be a sundial minus the 'marker' in the center.

"A clock?" Tsunade blinked, stunned.

Shizune's eyes went wide as she got to her feet and looked anew at their location. "Not a clock!" she said urgently, "_Time_! Shi-kun is talking about the Hidden Village of _Time_!"

"It doesn't exist!" the sannin protested.

"Not yet," Shi corrected with a smile, pulling out a tapestry showing the six of them all standing on the pedestal as the sun shone directly overhead. It was done with unerring detail and made those experienced with such things wonder if it hadn't been constructed from a machine in some way. "We've still got a few minutes till noon, and I'm still not a hundred percent certain on what's going to happen, but let me first explain to you the consequences of our choices here."

He pulled out a scroll and a sketchbook and handed them to Tsunade to show everyone (who were all now looking over the blond's shoulders anyway). The sketchbook showed each of them, at first individually in singular battles, then finally all together. First, Sasuke fought failingly against Orochimaru, his brother Itachi seen in the background with the Magenkyo Sharingan activated. Second, Shizune fought shadowed figures in an unidentified alley and she looked scared and beaten. Tsunade stood atop Katsuya the Slug Boss, and they faced three cloaked ninja, clearly member's of Akatsuki despite the lack of color in the drawings. Hinata was only seen laying prone on the ground with her eyes open and vacant, her body otherwise untouched. Then Naruto was seen before a dark and forbidding stature with what was clearly a visual-drawing-display of chakra going from him into the statue's mouth. Finally, the group portrait showed all of them together, even with Shi in the middle, standing at the center of a five way conflict of what looked like ALL of the Five Great Villages poised to destroy each other with only the six of them standing between all of it.

"The scroll with the red ribbon details the stories behind each picture, though that last one certainly speaks for itself, wouldn't you say," Shi informed them. "Here, flip it over. The blue scroll details _these_ pictures." He was smiling as he said this.

As horrifying and disturbing as the first set of pictures were, these next few were just as hopeful and inspiring! To begin, in virtually the same order, Sasuke was seen holding his brother as the man lay dying in his arms, his Akatsuki red-cloud cloak torn off and bloody. What was hopeful about this though, was that Sasuke was smiling down at his crying brother, Pentagram-shaped Magenkyo Sharingan showing from the boy's eyes. His neck was also clear of any curse mark.

"Before you ask any questions," Shi interrupted Sasuke when it looked like he might speak, "The scroll only has a few paragraphs for each picture, and it only gives story behind what's shown. None of the details or choices leading up to it. I suggest you read the story before deciding if this is a future you want or not."

Sasuke nodded and held his tongue as Tsunade moved on to the next picture. Shizune happily smiling while holding the hands of two young children, a boy and a girl, and was also clearly pregnant with a potential third on the way. Shizune's eyes went wide as she looked to Shi. He shrugged and pointed at the scroll, unwilling to repeat himself. Tsunade quickly turned the page, anxious to see her own potential future from this, and nearly dropped it in shock!

An old woman lay in a bed surrounded by everyone there and a full dozen that weren't. She was dying, but what made this wonderful for Tsunade, was that _she_ was the old woman in the bed, and everyone around her was a good ten or twenty years older and there were a lot of children present too! She took only a moment to compose herself before flipping to Hinata's future drawing. Or rather, Hinata and Naruto's future, as Hinata's showed she and Naruto, maybe only a year or two older, standing together getting married. Turn the page again and it showed Naruto holding twin boys and standing next to a smiling Hinata who held the hand of a young girl and was just a pregnant as Shizune had been in her drawing.

Naruto and Hinata turned matching shades of red and couldn't really say anything for a minute. The final picture was the group drawing and it dropped everyone's jaws. It was like a heroic montage straight out of a manga! Naruto, dressed similar but somehow more maturely than he did now, wearing the headband with the symbol of Time on it, hands on hips and coat waving in the wind, Hinata at his side in a form-fitting body suit and activated Byakugan. On either side of the two were Shi and Sasuke, the former looking like a real ninja rather than a hang-on as he did now, and the latter in a completely different outfit, somehow made to honor Itachi in some way they all felt. Just behind the two of them were Tsunade and Shizune respectively, looking much the same, but smiling and looking ready to kick ass. The best part, however, was that behind Tsunade they could see Jiraiya, and behind Shizune they could see Iruka, and they weren't the only ones in the picture either. It looked at first like there were hundreds more people behind the group, but as they paid closer attention to the details and saw a drawing of the 'model' in the background and just how tiny that image was, they realized it was closer to _thousands_!

"So, we all have to be standing on that at noon on the dot, right?" Tsunade confirmed eagerly.

"Yep," Shi nodded his head.

"Let's not be late then," Shizune agreed and helped Shi pack all his examples back up.

"Well, we still have..." Shi looked at his watch, then paled and moved much quicker. "Uh, let's all go stand on the platform now, shall we? I don't think we have as much time as I thought."

"MOVE!" Naruto urged on his own, picking Hinata up and jumping for the platform while Shizune and Shi trailed behind the rest, Tsunade up front with Naruto.

By sheer coincidence, the moment the last of them stepped up onto the platform, the sun came into the exact position Shi had painted it at and a beam of light struck a hidden mirror that reflected to many other hidden mirrors before each struck a special crystal from multiple angles. This crystal was directly beneath the platform and the moment the sun was in the correct position, the light was refocused within the crystal to create a quantum sub-space rift directly above it, namely on the platform. The simple explanation was that a portal opened and everyone standing on the platform at that moment in time was pulled into it and through to the other side. Of course the sun never *_stays_* in place, and the anomaly could only exist for as long as the light was focused correctly through the hidden crystal, so the very same moment the portal opened, it closed, making it seem to the outside observer like Team Hokage vanished in a flash of light.

_Unknown Location_

_Unknown Time_

_Unknown_

"Whoa! What is this place?!" Naruto cried out once the strange journey through the wormhole had passed.

"This," Shi answered with a flourish as he walked out from the building in front of them, "is your new village. _Jikokugakure_, the Village Hidden In Time!"

Everyone startled at seeing their friend coming from the building when he'd actually been right behind Shizune in getting on the platform. Looking back, they saw that he was gone from there and the only Shi around was standing in front of them.

"How'd you do that?" Sasuke demanded.

Shi grinned and replied, "I didn't choose the name of this village by happenstance or because I thought it sounded cool. This is a self-contained piece of Space/Time, answerable to it's own laws of physics. By sheer coincidence, I somehow was drawn into this place several, well, years before you guys arrived here just now. That gave me the, excuse the expression, the time I needed to figure out this place and work out what needs to happen next. I also found out how to better control my powers, and they are real powers by the way."

"We already suspected that," Tsunade acknowledged. "How long have you been here?"

Shi shrugged. "It's hard to tell. Despite the sun overhead," he pointed straight up so they would see what he was talking about, "this place doesn't have your standard day and night. Suffice it to say I've been here for the mental equivalent of ten years and leave it at that."

"But...!" Hinata blurted out, then silenced herself.

"I haven't aged, I know," he shrugged, "That's one of the things about this place. I'll explain it all in more detail in a bit, but for right now I'll let you take in what's just happened here."

"And what's this about founding another ninja village?" Tsunade said crossly. "I've had enough experience running one village, and I'm not about to have the Senju Clan be blamed for forming _another_ village, no matter what!"

Shi grinned and said, "Who said anything about you being the First _Makage_ Tsunade-san?" He then looked pointedly at Naruto. The younger blond's eyes went wide as he pointed to himself and said, "Me?"

Shi nodded.

"But... I..." Naruto stuttered, unsure of what to say. Shi was remarkably understanding.

"I know you had your heart set on becoming Hokage, Naruto," he said, patting the young ninja's shoulder. "Be honest with yourself. Do you really think that can happen anymore? With Konoha the way that it is? With the Council still in charge, and the men and women that banished you still around to squabble for their own personal power first and the welfare of their neighbors last? The Konoha you all grew up in no longer exists, and the day they got rid of you is when it died it's final gasping breath."

"But Jiraiya-sensei..." Naruto started to say.

Shi took his friend by the shoulders and lead him over to the building he'd walked out of. The room was as big as the Chuunin Exams stadium, the Finals stadium, but all indoors. It was filled with paintings, murals, statues, models, drawings, every form of art expression imaginable it filled every corner of the room. Shi drew Naruto's attention to one in particular that showed Jiraiya, ironically as he was at that very moment in time that Naruto was looking at it, sat at his desk looking tired and overworked and seen writing secret missions to evacuate certain people from Konoha alongside a few final laws as he planned his own escape from the Hokage's Hat, which he was probably planning on taking with him anyway.

"Jiraiya's done everything that he possibly could. Believe me, I know, possibilities is one of my specialties. Short of all the people trying to bring Konoha into corruption dying suddenly and consequence free, Konoha will fall within the next five years. Nothing can stop that. The most we can do now is minimize the collateral damage when it does. Starting up a new Hidden Village with the survivors and friends from a fallen Konoha is one way of doing that."

"You have been busy," Sasuke commented, admiring a statue of himself using a double-shot Chidori with Magenkyo Sharingan active.

"Like you would not believe," Shi agreed. "Come on, you guys haven't seen anything yet!"

"Your own personal art gallery is certainly impressive enough," Tsunade commented. "What more is there?" She almost bit her tongue as her question was answered the moment they stepped out a side door from the "Gallery" and into the village proper. If one could call it a village.

For one thing, there was no land. Or rather, no Earth. There was floating islands of earth or water or clouds or metal or just about anything that a person could stand on, all connected to each other with various types of walkways. From suspension bridges to climbing ropes, and golden arched paths to stone steps and stainless steel roads. The building architecture was just as eye-popping as there were modern buildings on mounts of dirt and earth, and then ancient monasteries and huts on high solid clouds. There were even buildings and structures that none of them could even imagine with foundations on platforms that were solid metal. All of this, the pathways, the islands, the structures, all of it surrounded a central object in a spiraling quadruple helix pattern. That central object was an ever-shifting shape that was a sphere one second, a rectangular building the next, a pyramid half a second after that, and then a mix-mash of infinite shapes crammed together to create a theoretical new shape that could only exist here.

"Wh-wh-what is this place?" Shizune questioned once she'd regained enough sense to ask.

"Jikokugakure," Shi replied simply and straight forward.

At the moment they were on one of the metal platforms and had just stepped out of... a four by four foot blue wooden box?!

"What the,,,!" Naruto screamed, then raced back inside to the Gallery, and out the door they'd arrived in, then back out where the others waited, before racing around the box, feeling it with his hands to make sure it was real.

"Yeah, did I mention that I wandered around this place just trying to figure out where everything goes and how it all fits together for the first three years?" Shi innocently remarked, scratching the back of his neck, embarrassed.

"I... think we should stick together until Shi has given us a full tour," Tsunade decided for everyone. "How is this even possible?"

"Like I said, this is a separated piece of Space/Time that follows it's own rules. It can only be accessed by very specific points on Earth and even then only at very precise moments of time. I've almost mapped all of them, but sometimes new ones spontaneously appear, while older ones disappear or are destroyed by outside forces. It's going to take a long time for me to explain everything, but I'll do what I can. For the mean time, there are somethings I'd like Naruto to do for me, if he'll agree."

"Uh, sure, what do you need?" the young ninja naively responded.

Shi smiled, then turned and dragged the willing blond with him down a metal-staircase pathway, which lead ultimately to the central object. The others quickly moved to follow along.

"What is that thing anyway?" Sasuke asked, pointing at the central object that was now a giant mirror.

"I've been calling it the Nexus," Shi answered. "It's quite obviously the center of this piece of Space/Time and what controls and holds it all together. Near as I've been able to figure out, it also connects with Time Itself on Earth. Go in the right door, or window at the right moment and you could find yourself wherever, or more specifically _whenever_ you'd want to be on Earth. Want to meet your grandfather and granduncle right after they founded Konoha?" he asked Tsunade with a wink.

"And you are taking Naruto-kun there now because...?" Hinata wanted to know.

"I've figured out five very specific... doors if you will. They lead to key moments in history, most specifically Naruto's history. If this village is to have a chance, Naruto needs to go to those moments in time and make certain changes. And I really wish that I had time to let you guys settle in and get used to the place first, but these windows aren't going to stay around for very long, so the sooner Naruto goes through them, the better off we'll be in the long run."

"What moments in history? What are you talking about?" Naruto shouted.

"The day of your birth, the day Hinata was kidnapped by Kumo, the night of the Uchiha Massacre, and the Great Naruto Bridge during your first C-Rank Mission. Oh, and one other," Shi told him.

"..." Naruto was stunned, unsure of what to say or do, except continue to follow along.

"What would he have to do? And aren't you talking about changing history? That's not possible!" Shizune protested with Tsunade's agreement.

"You'd think that, wouldn't you?" Shi smiled knowingly. "Turns out, if Naruto _doesn't_ go to these times and make certain changes, history _WILL_ change, and not for the better. Think about it. We come to the Village of Time, where time travel is not only possible, but the way things work here. I send Naruto back in time. If he doesn't go back in time, things change. If he does go back in time, things stay exactly as we remember them."

"Whoa, I've got a headache," Naruto complained.

"Me too," everyone but Shi agreed.

"Don't worry about it," he said as they came closer to the central object, the Nexus. "Let me just tell you this. The consequences of Naruto _not_ going back in time are that the Kumo-nin succeed in kidnapping Hinata and she's kept as a breeder in a dungeon somewhere, never acknowledged as even existing while the Hyuuga Clan self-destruct and start a silent civil war between the Main and Branch Houses. Sasuke gets killed by Madara, progenitor of the Uchiha Clan alongside the rest of his family. And for the other three... Well, let's just say that we stand to gain a great deal based on what Naruto does in each of these moments of history."

"What do I have to do?" he asked, suddenly nervous. Shi smiled at him.

"Just be yourself. Don't worry about doing anything right or wrong. You've already done it, so just act like these are extra missions. Solo missions, but missions nevertheless. And here we are. One thing to remember, whenever you see a glowing gold door or window, that's your only chance to get back here, or to move on to the next time period. If it closes before you go through it, you're going to be stuck in that time period until we can retrieve you. Don't worry, I know how to do that, just... don't miss those windows, OK?"

"Right," Naruto gulped and looked in trepidation at the approaching doorway, which was really just a stone archway at the end of their stone/metal pathway.

"Here we are," Shi pointed. "Just walked straight forward and think about the day you were born. Which also happens to be the day the Kyuubi attack Konoha and got sealed into you. The rest, well, it should just fall into place. I hope."

"You _hope_?!" The women all screamed at him. But it was too late. Naruto stepped through the stone archway into the central object (which at that moment looked like an exact replica of the Hokage monument from 14 years ago.

Then he stepped back out. As did four other people.

"Wow, that was faster than I thought," Shi admitted.

"N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked uncertainly. Not without reason as the Naruto that had just stepped out, with companions, was vastly changed from the Naruto that had stepped in. For one thing, this Naruto had real whiskers, slit-blue eyes, two sets of ears (a human set and a pair of red fox ears atop his head), and a waving furry red fox tail coming out of his butt.

"Hey Hinata-chan, long time no see. Sort of," he chuckled, sounding relieved and exhausted all at once.

"Oh my, is this _the_ Hinata-chan we've heard so much about?" the redheaded woman just behind Naruto questioned. Tsunade was staring open-mouthed at her and her tall blond male companion, while Sasuke was in the same state glaring at the other two of the new arrivals.

"Oh, sorry about that Kaa-san," Naruto sheepishly scratched his new fox-ear features. "Everyone, these are my parents. Uzumaki Kushina, and Namikaze Minato. And these are... well, I guess friends of mine. Sasuke, you recognize Haku and Zabuza Momochi, don't ya?"

"H-how-?" the last Uchiha could barely ask the question.

"I saved them. It turns out, we actually killed Kage Bunshin on the bridge. I needed to get a power boost from the Kyuubi first though, which meant going back to the day it was sealed into me and making a deal. That I also got to save my parents, who didn't have to die like everyone thought, was just the extra cup of ramen! I also got to save baby Hinata. Although, I think I now know where your crush on me started, Hinata-chan. Sorry about having to manhandle you like that, but we were in the middle of a fight!"

Hinata merely blushed and started twiddling her fingers.

"Ohh, Minato-kun, she's so _cute_! I think our boy's made an excellent choice, don't you?" Kushina gushed at Hinata's shy appearance.

"Whatever you say dear," Minato replied as he knew he was required to by now. Kushina had spent plenty of time training her husband before being rescued by their _teenage_ son! From their point of view he was, literally, just born yesterday and new here he was saving them using ninja powers that they would be hard-pressed to use!

"Some village kid," Zabuza growled, adjusting his sword. "Is this really all there is to it? Even with a Sannin, the Fourth Hokage, and an Uchiha and Hyuuga together, this is hardly a ninja village worth joining."

"Zabuza-sama," Haku whispered behind his mask, "Naruto-kun _did_ say that he was just starting his village and that while he'd been traveling for weeks, he'd only just arrived at this location. They have only just arrived, as now we have."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the bandaged nukenin from Mizu waved off his apprentice's logical argument.

"W-w-weeks?!" Hinata blurted out.

Naruto and Shi both shrugged. "Who wants to go next?" Shi offered with a grin.

Everyone immediately backed away from the stone archway and Tsunade stepped forward, pulling Shi back with her. "I think it's time for that tour Kaito-san. Unless there are any other portraits that we have to look at beforehand that is?" Shi just grinned and didn't really reply.

"Believe me, Tsunade-sama," he finally said, "when I say that we have all the time in the world, I mean that both literally and figuratively and then some. Let's start with what took me five days to find. The food stores and kitchen areas. Oh, somebody remind me, we need to send a letter to Jiraiya as soon as possible, telling him that we're starting a new village so he can get us fully recognized."

"But it takes a majority of the Five Great Villages to ratify a new village!" Shizune protested.

"I know," Shi grinned and lead them on a tour of their new Hidden Village.

END _San_.


	36. HeMan

_Previously:_

Naruto approached the castle that had been haunting his dreams for weeks now and finally he was here. The wooden bridge slammed down from the gaping 'jaw' of the skull face of the castle, only feet in front of where Naruto stood before it. Idly he noted that a sudden thunderstorm had sprung up over the peninsula, lightning and thunder crashing overhead as he slowly stepped across the jawbridge.

Just as he crossed the threshold of the castle, stepping from inside to outside, there was another flash of lightning and he felt a shock course through his entire body. It only lasted moments for Naruto, but for another sharing his body, it was quite different.

"_Hello, Kitsune-sama," an ethereal feminine voice spoke in the space between moments, transcending the physical and reaching into Naruto's body and mind and reached the cage within a sewer that held the strongest demon beast known._

"_**I'm honored,**" the demon fox chuckled behind its bars, letting it's red chakra show._

_Before the fox a golden light appeared, shaping itself like the silhouette of a falcon before coalescing into the translucent form of a human woman, bearing wings on her back and a ceremonial dress of some kind while wielding a golden staff, capped with a falcon's image._

"_**It's not every day that the Sorceress **_**herself**_** pays a visit to one of her demon beasts. To what do I owe this... unexpected pleasure?**" the Kyuubi mocked the woman._

"_Quite simply," she said, getting right to the point, "I am offering you a choice. I did not know you would be here, but I must abide by the Will of Grayskull, and the Castle will not allow entrance to one of your ilk. However, the one that both I and Grayskull have been waiting for is also the one that you call your prison, so we are in a very unique situation at the moment."_

"_**Do tell,**" the demon fox laughed behind its cage._

"_Go to hell," she said with a very hard look in her eyes, "or accept parole and become the battle companion for Naruto, on the condition that all of your remaining power remains within his body where it will continue to be purified, without your interference. Those are your only two choices."_

_The Kyuubi got to its feet and growled threateningly. "**You DARE...!!**"_

_She glared and the golden light with the silhouette of a falcon appeared once more and arcs of raw power reached through the bars of its cage, causing pain to the demon, and all it could do was howl in rage._

"_You are the one that is daring much at the moment, Kitsune," she warned. "If you choose the former, be aware that the Power of Grayskull will instantly remove your spirit from this boy's body and immediately cast you into hell without any of your great and hard-earned power with you. Either choice, the bulk of your power remains inside Naruto, being purified into natural energy from the corrupted form you've transformed it into. There is a very limited amount of time, Kitsune, so make your choice quickly."_

"_**And what if I do choose to become the **_**boy's**_** battle companion? What would I get out of it?**" it asked._

"_You would once more have a real body, created from a combination of your spirit, a third of your remaining power, and the Power of Grayskull," she stated. "You would also be both honor, and magically bound to assisting Naruto in his future adventures and unable to hurt him in any way. Though whether you choose to help still remains your choice."_

"_**A ****THIRD****!!**" the Kyuubi roared. "**That is entirely unacceptable! HALF! No less! I'm not stupid enough to barter to have all my remaining power with me, even though it's already been halved by the Fourth Hokage... So I will take half of my remaining power with me into the new body, the other half, which is a quarter of my true power, can remain in the boy to be **_**purified**_**, PAH!**"_

"_A third, no more," the Sorceress stated._

_The Kyuubi narrowed its eyes at the winged woman before it, growling dangerously. "**I will not bargain on my own power, Sorceress! Give the boy half and let me keep the remainder, or I will raise my price to TWO-thirds! You said it yourself, there is limited time, and I have made my choice. I will be the boys battle companion, but only on the condition that I keep HALF my remaining power! Do we have a deal?**"_

_The Sorceress crossed her arms, glaring up at the giant fox with an annoyed expression. Finally, she said, "Half the remaining demonic power that resides in this boy's body will remain exactly where it is. The rest will be split in half once more, one part going to your new body, the other half going into Grayskull itself for payment."_

"_**WHAT?!!**" the Kyuubi roared._

"_Originally the remainder would have been split into equal thirds," she explained. "One third staying in Naruto, one third going with you into the new body, the other third going into Grayskull for instant purification. Grayskull gets less power this way, but it was you who suggested a full half remain with Naruto."_

"_**I WANT MY HALF!!**" Kyuubi thrashed against the seal's cage bars._

"_You know how this works," the Sorceress coolly reminded the demon beast, causing it to suddenly freeze in realization. "Decision has been made. Do we have a deal? Time is up."_

_The Nine-Tailed Fox let out a rumbling sigh and lowered its massive head. "**Deal**," it agreed, right before vanishing in a flash of golden light, along with the Sorceress. Soon enough, the sewer cage mindscape vanished as well as it no longer was needed._

Naruto paused after the shock had passed from his system and looked around and briefly glancing back to see another bolt of lightning coming down behind him. Shrugging, he continued on into the castle. He explored for a little while before making his way to the central chamber where he found a massive pyramid dais, a golden throne set upon the pinnacle.

Naruto jumped suddenly when there was a falcon's cry from the shadows. Watching wide-eyed, he saw a beautiful blue, orange and white falcon swoop down and fly over to the throne at the top of the pyramid. Instead of landing or even perching itself on the throne, the bird hovered for only a few seconds before it was covered with a blinding golden light. The light reshaped itself and when Naruto finally blinked away the spots from the light, he saw a beautiful woman standing there, a pair of wings matching the falcon's coming out of her back, while she was dressed in an ornate gold and white ceremonial dress and headdress. In her hands she held a seven-foot golden staff, capped with an image of a falcon with its wings spread majestically.

"Hello, Uzumaki Naruto," the woman greeted him warmly, "I have been expecting you."

_Now:_

"Uh, you have?" Naruto blurted out, overwhelmed and surprised by recent events.

She nodded and sat down regally upon the throne, keeping one hand around her staff.

"I am the Sorceress," she introduced herself, "the Guardian of the Secrets of Castle Grayskull. I have been the one sending you the dreams that lead you here. Calling you to your destiny."

"Uh, my destiny?" he questioned, startled at this sudden turn of conversation.

She stared, and then after a couple moments, held out her staff. Green energy began to glow around the tip until it expanded into a wide window, a window which was soon filled with images.

"Eons ago, more time than you can easily imagine, this world was a very different place," she began her story. "Our world was once called _Eternia_, though it is not called such anymore due to the numerous factions and nations present today, as a whole it is still known by that name." In the window, various images were flying by, some pictures of jungles, cities, mountains, oceans, islands, even glaciers and valleys.

"The Elemental Nations of today did not exist as little as a thousand years ago," she told him, as the window showed what Naruto recognized as a world map, briefly flashing with the borders and insignias of the various nations before just showing the land as it was. "Before that time, the world was divided into regions, identified more by landmarks, or standard features, or even the animals that inhabited the place. Once, there was a time when our world was split into four. The Light and the Dark, and the land and the sea." As she said this, the world map took on different colors, the Endless Ocean lighting in blue, all the land and islands turning green, while everything East of Demon Country turned white and the rest black.

"Then, only two thousand five hundred years ago, a great hero changed this," she continued, and a new image appeared, one that Naruto recognized from his dreams. "He-Man, Guardian of the Secret of Grayskull and Defender of Eternia. He was a great hero who enforced justice and loved kindness, and who protected Eternia from evil. By his hand, with the help of his friends and allies, he defeated the forces of evil and saved the world. Then he changed the face of the planet by vanquishing the darkness forever from the surface of our world, but at a great cost." Naruto saw the giant blond man riding a green saber tooth tiger in red armor, battling many foes, and then images from a scene that happened over two thousand years ago. He-Man stood before Castle Grayskull, his sword lifted to the heavens and then there was a blazing burst of power and energy that quickly engulfed the whole planet in a blinding light. Wherever the light touched, darkness fled and evil was burned away until everything had changed.

The final image settled on the prone form of the once great hero before shifting to a grave surrounded by all the man's friends and family. Then the window reverted back to green energy and the Sorceress was suddenly by Naruto's side before the pyramid dais.

"He-Man gave his life to give a lasting peace to Eternia," she told him. "And there was, for a time. But the hearts of men are not as pure as the heroes who defend them, and eventually groups of dissidents turned into factions, which turned into nations and such has become the world you see today."

"Wow," Naruto gasped as the scope of all that had changed in the past two thousand years became real. "So, uh, why did you summon me? I mean, how come you were sending me those dreams?"

The Sorceress smiled and nodded her head approvingly down at him.

"I'm glad you know to ask that question," she said. "As I said, He-Man's sacrifice rid the planet of the darkness from the surface of our world, but such power as the forces of evil command cannot be truly destroyed. It was merely driven underground and has since evolved in the two thousand years of inactivity. At first it was only a mere sliver of dark energy, keeping to the shadows and only in the smallest of numbers. But now... I fear that something much worse is about to be unleashed."

"What?" Naruto asked.

"In the land known to you as Demon Country, archaeologists have uncovered a relic of the time before He-Man's sacrifice, before the era of peace two thousand years ago. It is known as _Snake Mountain_. It was the primary base for the forces of evil and is a focal point for the powers of darkness. It has already been uncovered, and there is nothing that can be done to stop that which lay dormant inside from awakening, if it were ever possible to do so in the first place."

"Well, there's got to be something we can do! I'll fight whatever that stupid mountain's got to offer!" Naruto boldly stated.

"I am glad to hear that, because that is exactly what I must ask you to do," the Sorceress told him with a hint of sadness. "In truth, I knew this day was coming long ago. As such, I took precautions and made preparations for what needed to be done."

"What's that?" he asked.

She smiled warmly at him and cupped his face, rubbing her thumb along his whisker birthmarks.

"I am a direct descendant of He-Man, Naruto," she told him. "As well as the first Sorceress, who guided and helped He-Man in protecting the Secret of Grayskull. In order to understand what I must ask of you, I must tell you more about about my family. Come, walk with me." He nodded and followed along.

_Castle Grayskull_

_Some Time Later_

She lead him to a hall just off from the throne room. This hallway was filled, on both sides, with paintings, statues, and portraits, mostly of redheaded women, but also of blond men here and there. The statues were all of men, and more often than not, the portraits were of women dressed identically to the Sorceress.

"He-Man was also known as Prince Adam, and then later King Adam of Eternia," she said as they walked along. "He married as his queen a woman named Teela, adopted daughter of the King's Man-At-Arms. His Captain of the Guard, so to speak," she added after seeing Naruto's confusion.

They stopped before one portrait in particular of a slightly less tan, but no less muscular man that looked exactly like He-Man. It was also the only painting that held more than one person that Naruto could see from where he stood in the hall. A fiery redhead in a battledress that looked no less regal than King Adam's robes stood beside the once great hero known as He-Man.

"Teela was also the daughter of the Sorceress herself. Unfortunately, the first Sorceress was committed to her mission and that would not allow her to raise her daughter here, and so she gave the baby to Man-At-Arms to raise as his own. There was strife, but they eventually reconciled, long before Teela and Adam married, and had twin children; Randall and Sheila." They stopped before another pair of paintings, depicting a red haired prince in one and a blond warrior woman in the next.

"Randall ruled as king after his father gave his life. He ruled with fairness, wisdom and there was peace," she said as they moved on.

"Sheila disappeared to parts unknown, but it was said that she explored and protected people where her brother's influence could not reach. We have since learned that she went on to become the mother of what is now known as the Elemental Nations. The power to manipulate the elements and control your internal energies come from her and her children. It was said that she married a powerful sage, a man known as the Sage of the Six Paths, who showed her how to control her chakra and what all it could do for her. He lived with her and taught her and her daughters all that he could. She did have one son though, who we lost track of and who was said to be extraordinarily powerful.

"From Randall, the line of the Sorceress and Sorcerers continued throughout the ages. It was never forced, and thankfully there has never been any such strife as between Teela and her mother. For each generation, one of us is simply called to the post and is trained by the previous Guardian to wait until the next is called. As it was believed that all the Power of Grayskull vanished with the Sacrifice of He-Man, no one has tried to take Grayskull for themselves, though many know that the line of the Sorceress still guards this place."

"So," Naruto hesitantly asked, "does that mean that I'm supposed to be the next Guardian of Grayskull? I'm supposed to be some kind of... Sorcerer Supreme?"

The Sorceress laughed out loud and again cupped his cheek fondly.

"No, not quite, Naruto," she told him.

"A few decades ago, I had just taken up my post as the Sorceress, and the Whirlpool Country was as active and fruitful as any. Then I received my first vision of Snake Mountain being uncovered. I was frightened by this of course, but after some time meditating, I knew what I had to do."

"What?" he couldn't help asking.

She smiled and told him, "I chose a husband and we had a child. As I was already the Sorceress, though I could see my child, I could not raise her, but he was happy to do so and came to visit with her quite often. Then came the day that the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked and laid waste to most of our country. The castle was spared, and thankfully my daughter had survived with many other people. I had always suspected that there was more to the Kyuubi's attack on my country than what most claimed it for. Despite their titles as demon beasts, the Bijuu are not known for randomly attacking one place leaving everything around it be."

Naruto frowned, a darkness filling his eyes as guilt plagued his heart.

"Do not worry yourself, Naruto," she said to him after noticing his sudden depression. "I know what was done with the Kyuubi after it attacked Konoha as it attacked my homeland. You are already a great hero, for helping in keeping the beast away, where it can no longer be used as an engine of destruction."

"I know this next part only from my visions and letters I received from her," the Sorceress continued her story. "My daughter fled the country and went to Konoha, where she enlisted as a ninja and quickly rose through the ranks. While there, she met someone very special and fell in love with him."

"Huh? Who was he?" Naruto asked, curious.

"I found it hard to believe myself at first, but once I knew his name, I tracked it down and confirmed it with my visions. My daughter met and married the only living direct descendant of Sheila, daughter of King Adam and Queen Teela. Removed by two thousand years of independent breeding, it was a one in a million, million chance! The descendants of the twin children of He-Man found each other and fell in love."

"Wow!" Naruto gasped, awed. "That's so cool! So, who was he? What are their names?"

She smiled at him and lead him to the last two portraits in the hall. Raising her arm to present them, the Sorceress said their names as Naruto recognized their faces. "Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina. You see, Naruto, you are their only child. You are the direct descendant of He-Man. And, my grandson."

Naruto's eyes began to tear up as he realized all he'd been told was the truth, as hanging before him on the wall was a single portrait of the only other painting with more than one person in it. The Fourth Hokage, standing with his arms around a pregnant red haired woman that Naruto could only vaguely remember the face of, but it was etched forever into his brain as the first memory he'd ever had; the face of his mother.

"Gr-gr-gran-grandma?" he stuttered, tears pooling in his eyes.

She immediately dropped her staff and was on her knees before her own flesh and blood and hugging the life out of him as he did the same to her. They said no more words, just feeling and expressing their emotions to one another as two lifetimes of pain and hurt were healed in a few moments.

_Castle Grayskull_

_Later That Day_

It was some time before either one of them were composed enough to continue their conversation, and the Sorceress was not in any particular hurry about this. There was no attack going on, Skeletor, King Hiss, even Hordak were all long dead, over two thousand years dead in fact!

She decided to take her time and get to know her grandson and let him know her and understand what was happening here first before telling him of his destiny. His true destiny.

Finally, much later in the afternoon, only an hour or two before sunset in fact, they both had calmed down some and were ready to resume their conversation. Walking alongside her grandson, her staff lighting the way through the dark and twisting passages through the Castle, she spoke with him and answered his questions, most of them about his mother and if she knew his father.

"I only met him once, on their wedding day," she answered. "He seemed a kind man to me, but very serious and scarred by his past, both for the accomplishments, and the losses. I could tell though, above all else, he loved Kushina, and she him. When I heard they were expecting you, and I began to have visions of the man you would become. Know that they both loved you dearly, Naruto. I don't know all that happened that day, the day of your birth, but I am quite sure that it was the hardest thing either one of them had to do. Everything that they did, whether the choice was planned or made in the heat of the moment, please understand that it was done with love for you, my grandson."

Tears in his eyes, Naruto nodded his head and wiped the droplets of saltwater away.

"I... I kind of do understand," he finally said. "It's not easy being a ninja, or doing what's right for the village, or even just saving people's lives. I know there are hard decisions that have to be made, decisions that affect everyone and everything under the Hokage's protection. But I'm still going to become Hokage and protect my precious people!"

The Sorceress smiled down at the hyperactive blond and couldn't help cupping his cheek one more time.

"I'm glad to hear that," she said.

"Where are we going anyway?" he finally asked after they walked past a few more winding corridors.

"To a very special place. Only the Sorceress herself may know all the secrets of Castle Grayskull, but I want you to understand Naruto, what I'm about to show you can not be told to anyone else. I also want you to understand that you are not the next Sorcerer of Castle Grayskull either."

"I'm not?" Naruto question, kind of surprised, after everything she'd told him already. "So who is going to be the next one?"

The Sorceress smiled as she led him inside a room that most would consider a dead end. She stood in the exact center and had him stand right before her. "Your daughter will be the next Sorceress," she told him plainly. She could barely contain her laughter at the look upon his face.

"Wha... But... I... Huh?!" he blathered. "But I don't have any kids! I'm still a kid myself! How can I have a _daughter_? There must be some kind of mistake!"

"Naruto," she calmed him despite her laughter, "Calm down. It's all right. I thought you might understand, given what I've already told you. Part of my powers, in protecting Castle Grayskull, is the power to see into the future. True, you do not have a daughter, or any children at all. Yet."

"Yet?" he repeated, doe-eyed.

"Correct. Yet," she said. "Like He-Man himself, one day you will have children of your own. Twins in fact, a boy and a girl. I'm not so old myself yet that I can't wait for the next generation to be born. Understand Naruto, what I see are merely visions, not prewritten history. They are subject to change, and what I have foreseen may never come to pass. Unless you make the right decisions that is."

Naruto stared up at his grandmother for a moment before looking down and taking some time to think. His gut clenched and his hand unconsciously reached up to grab it, ironically the same place where the seal was. Finally, he looked up at her and asked only one question, "What do I have to do?"

She smiled and then lifted her staff before slamming it down on the floor at their feet. Moments later, they felt some shaking and then the floor that they stood upon fell away. Naruto almost panicked, but seeing the Sorceress standing there calmly, still smiling, he calmed down and enjoyed the ride as the segmented stone platform they now rode, fell into the abyss below the castle.

Before too long, the eerie blackness of the abyss gave way to a starlight glow. A glow that Naruto soon discovered originated from several crystal towers that seemed to stretch away into infinity. They were beautiful, he thought. They were also probably the reason for why the Castle still stood after several thousand years.

Once their flying platform reached a specified level, they went from going down to traveling horizontally. Before too long, much to Naruto's surprise, they came to the largest of the crystal towers, one that even had a platform of it's own, grown right from the crystal itself. Their own platform slid up alongside the crystal one and the Sorceress gestured for Naruto to follow her as she stepped onto the tower's platform.

After they'd stepped off, the stones they had traveled on broke apart and flew back up into the darkness. Naruto watched them disappear, and when he turned back around, the Sorceress was standing next to the center of the pillar upon which they stood. Held suspended inside the crystal pillar, Naruto saw a brightly glowing orb. He could feel the power of it from where he stood, and he was still near the edge of the platform.

"This crystal orb is the heart of Castle Grayskull," she told him, "and the source for all it's, and my own power. It is a conduit for the mighty power that He-Man himself once wielded. And shall again."

Naruto blinked and did a double-take between the orb and the Sorceress, not fully comprehending.

"Something that few ever understood about He-Man, Naruto," she told him. "The source of his power did not come from Castle Grayskull. Instead, you might say it came from his own heart. This orb does not contain that which made He-Man powerful. It merely channeled the mystical powers into a young boy in order to make him a mighty hero. The power, was He-Man's alone."

"Wow," Naruto gasped, barely able to grasp the concept of a person being _that_ powerful.

"But as ninja of today require hand seals and weapons to be their tools, He-Man had his own tool," she grinned and held up her staff. Moments later, a bolt of pure power shot out from the orb and briefly impacted the falcon staff, before being focused and shooting down into the darkness below them.

After this display, Naruto half expected a Boss Summon to show up, or something equally impressive. Instead, as he stared down over the edge, a wood and metal box floated up from the depths. Almost disappointed by this lack of flare, he froze when he saw a certain symbol carved onto the top of the box. A chill ran up and down his spine as that symbol appeared before his mind's eye.

He'd seen that symbol before. In his dreams. It was the symbol that the strong man from his dreams had worn on his chest. _He-Man_, he realized with wide-eyed shock. He'd been listening, he knew he was the hero's direct descendant, and he definitely believed his grandmother with everything she'd told him, but there was still something profound about seeing that symbol on that box.

Shortly, it had reached them on the platform and hovered in the air before the Sorceress, between them, with the latch facing him. He was practically terrified of that latch and what opening that box would mean for him, but... something was calling to him. He could feel it in his bones, and there was little doubt that whatever was in that box was going to change his life, forever.

"Open it," she said.

After seeing his reaction, she forewent opening it herself. The future heir of the Power could have no fear. Well, not about his own power at least. He needed to see it for himself if he was to believe, and accept what had to be.

Hesitating for only a moment, Naruto reached for the latch and then pushed the lid open and stepped back. His jaw nearly dropped in shock as he saw the very sword he'd been dreaming of. It was literally the sword of his dreams, exactly the same in every detail!

Slowly, he pulled the massive double-edged blade from the box. It weighed more than he thought and once he had it out of the box, it almost immediately dropped to the ground. He was barely able to keep his grip on it as the vibration shook him. It even cut into the crystal by a couple inches!

"Whoa! Heavy," he commented, struggling to raise the sword from the platform.

"Soon to be much lighter in the hands of He-Man," the Sorceress told him. "Merely raise the sword above your head and say 'By the Power of Grayskull' and you shall be transformed into He-Man, reborn."

"Don't ask for much, do ya?" he wryly retorted. Taking a deep breath, he heaved and lifted the Sword above his head, holding it with both hands.

"By the Power of Grayskull!" he shouted.

Instantly, with no hesitation, the Sword itself shifted, the symbol at the hilt changing to a cross guard before the orb they were standing next to lit up like lightning! All of the crystal towers flashed and resonated with the orb of power, power which soon arched overhead and then pooled down into a single bolt of energy, striking the Sword first and channeling down into Naruto, changing him as it struck. There was another flash of power and energy and in the next moment, the small blond 13-year-old had disappeared and in his place was a six foot blond muscleman with blue eyes and the same tanned skin Naruto had!

"I HAVE THE POWER!" He-Man screamed, the transformation completed.

The Sorceress took a moment to take in the changes to her grandson, as well as the differences between the man standing before her and the original He-Man from ages past. Prince Adam, and thus He-Man had let his hair grow out a bit so it was around neck-length. Naruto's hair was spiky and cropped short, and so was this new He-Man's hair. In fact, the only real difference between He-Man and an 'adult Naruto' would be the size of him, his musculature, the fact that he no longer had whisker marks on his cheeks, and also his sense of dress.

He-Man of the old had worn a simple chest plate with his symbol imprinted upon it and red leather pants and boots. Naruto, surprisingly, did not have the chest plate at all. Instead, it might be better to call it an armored vest. It was a silver and gold-lined coloring, and covered his entire chest and shoulders, but left his arms and abdomen completely bare. At his waist, he wore a belt very similar to the original He-Man, only it was a bright golden yellow in color. The pants were the same form-fitting armored variety, except they were gray and black, more similar to what a ninja might wear, same with the footwear, with the boots leaving the toes and heals open to the air.

Overall, quite an impressive change, if the Sorceress did say so herself.

"Of course, no hero is complete without a trusty mount to carry him into battle. Prince Adam had with him a tame tiger as his loyal companion. Unfortunately, you brought no such animal with you, and it would be remiss to have you summon a toad just for that. But Grayskull has found a way to rectify this error. Simply look within and allow the Power to guide you," she advised.

He-Man nodded, and did as bid. Only a few moments later, he held up his sword and pointed it straight out across the crystal platform from him. There was another bolt of power, though this time there was a red-tinge to it, and it seemed to originate more from He-Man's abdomen than the orb of power this time. The reason for this was soon discovered as He-Man's new mount appeared in a burst of energy.

A red-furred, green-armored nine-tailed fox stood crouched in front of He-Man and the Sorceress.

He-Man startled, taking a step back and holding the Sword of Power before him defensively.

"The Kyuubi?!!" he exclaimed. "How?!" That was another of the changes, as He-Man's voice was much deeper and more mature-sounding than Naruto's normal speech.

"The Bijuu are never allowed to set foot near Grayskull," the Sorceress answered. "Let alone inside it's sacred halls. As close as it came when it destroyed Whirlpool Country was as near as it dared, and even then, it wouldn't have if it had not been compelled by another. Nevertheless, Naruto, you are destined to be He-Man, so the fact that you contained the Kyuubi no Kitsune within you needed to be rectified. You probably felt a shock as you first entered the Castle?"

He-Man slowly nodded his head, rubbing his stone-hard six pack.

"That was myself, and Castle Grayskull itself communing with the great beast to make a contract. In exchange for serving He-Man for the remainder of its existence, it would be released from the seal and given a small portion of it's power," she explained.

"_Hardly anything worth mentioning at all,_" the nine-tailed fox before them growled, it's voice rough and animalistic, but still understandable. "_Barely a sixth of my overall power. But still... worth it._" It stretched each of it's nine tails to their limits as well as all its limbs like Naruto had seen ordinary foxes do in the wild.

"Ohhhh...kay..." He-Man scratched the back of his neck in a very Naruto-like way. "What do I call you then, since quite obviously you're no longer the Kyuubi?"

"_Hm, good question,_" the fox mused. "_I've only ever been called Fox, or Kitsune before. Until I received my ninth tail and earned the title of Kyuubi. What was the brute's first mount called?_"

The Sorceress glared and crossed her arms warningly. "_He-Man's_ first battle companion was known as Battlecat. Given that he did travel on the back of a rather large tiger."

"_Very well,_" the nine-tailed fox responded, "_Call me _Devilfox_! Rather appropriate don't you think?_"

"Very," He-Man said in monotone.

"Of course, neither of you can remain in these forms indefinitely," the Sorceress told them both. "Not that the Power of Grayskull is not infinite, but it is also for a purpose. And that purpose is to fight evil. Not merely imbue a boy and his pet with the power of the universe."

"Right, gotcha," He-Man nodded, and then held up his sword, and in a reverse of the earlier sequences, the bolts of power left both Devilfox and He-Man, the energy channeling itself back into the orb with a flash of blinding light. Leaving behind only Uzumaki Naruto, carrying a much slimmer and altered version of the Sword of Power... and a small red-furred one-tailed fox with matching red slit eyes.

"Whoa, what the...?!" Naruto shouted upon seeing the fox that was left behind.

"Well what did you expect, bozu?" the fox said in a less growly voice identical to what he'd heard whenever he'd visited it inside the Seal. "The deal was I get my freedom from the Seal so long as I remain your battle companion. Not exactly fair if I only get that freedom whenever you need me for battle though, is it?"

"Uh... you can talk?"

The little fox rolled its eyes and shared a look of contempt with the Sorceress. "Regular genius this one is. Any wonder why I took my first opportunity on getting out of him?"

"Hey!"

"That's enough!" the Sorceress commanded.

"He started it!" they both shouted, pointing at one another.

"I don't care who started it, I'm finishing it!" she snapped at them.

"Sorry," they both hung their heads in apology.

"That's better," the Sorceress acceded.

"I can see that you two will manage to get along well enough," she said after a moment of silence. "Which is good, seeing how that you are both now bound to each other, as battle partners at the least, if nothing else. Though would it be too much to expect for the two of you to eventually become friends?"

"No way!" Naruto immediately denied.

"Like hell!" the fox exclaimed.

The Sorceress sighed and shrugged to herself.

"Very well then," she said, then turned to the little one-tailed fox before them, "You need a name, a standard name, and Kyuubi no longer applies, considering that you only have one tail and Ichibi has been taken. Devilfox is your battle form's name, and it would give Naruto's true identity away if you were to have the same name as He-Man's battle companion. So, what shall it be?"

"Anything but the obvious," the former demon stated, settling itself into a sitting posture. "Fox, Kitsune, Kit, Kitsu, Foxy – all that just plain forget it! I once heard about this dragon that teamed up with a dragon-hunting knight and got named Draco of all things! So if you don't want me leaving... presents in all his gear and making this partnership as difficult as possible, no names like that all right?"

"All right already!" Naruto said, exasperated. He put on his thinking pose and thought for a minute.

"How about _Shippo_ then?" the young hero offered, much to the Sorceress' amusement and the little fox's dismay. Demonstrated by it's stunned expression and lack of rapid response.

"Are you _insane_?! Calling me _tail_ is almost WORSE than calling me 'fox' anything!" he whined.

"Yet rather appropriate, don't you think?" the Sorceress turned the former demon's words back on itself.

The fox scowled up at her, but had little argument as there was no way it was telling this boy it's true name. The Sorceress by right of her position already knew it, but names held power and the fox would much rather Naruto _not_ know its. At least not until they'd learned to trust one another enough. Perhaps not ever.

"Fine," the red fox let out a hefty sigh, "You may call me _Shippo_. And don't be adding any suffixes! The name itself is bad enough, thank you very much!"

"You're welcome!" Naruto chirped, smiling broadly.

Shippo cursed at him.

"Now that wasn't nice," the blond chastised his new companion. He had a feeling if he ever called the foul-mouthed fox his pet he'd experience worse than the threat of little surprises left in his sleeping roll.

Shippo suggested he perform a physical impossibility with a three syllable word or two.

"I think that's quite enough," the Sorceress intervened. "Thank the gods that there is no crisis, though I understand Naruto does have an appointment to meet a man named Jiraiya in a few days. We can use those days to train the both of you in your new roles. Then I will send the both of you to the rendezvous point via magical portal. Don't rely on it, as I cannot open a portal from anywhere but here at the heart of Castle Grayskull, and it would not be wise to do so often."

"No shit," Shippo agreed. Sort of.

"OK Obaachan!" Naruto enthusiastically agreed.

"Let's return to the castle proper for now. Then we can begin to discuss your training," the Sorceress suggested with a soft sigh. The response to this offer almost blew out the eardrums of fox and sorceress together. It was going to be a long week.

End...?


	37. Harry Potter and the Slaves of Hogwarts

Title: Harry Potter and his Slaves

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:JK Rowling has Harry, and whoever else from the books show up in these plots. I don't own either and I'm not making any money from all this, so don't bother suing me.

Summary: AU The Dark Forces won in the end, not in battle, but in society. Now, Harry Potter, still the Boy Who Lived, must grow up in a world where slavery exists and is strictly enforced.

AN:Few things that are different from canon; Grindelwald and Dumbledore teamed up instead of fighting, Albus talking Gellert around to a more peaceful solution, while the once Dark Wizard corrupted Albus to accept some things over others in their "plans". Tom Riddle still became Voldemort, but was more a pure anarchist than a "Dark Lord of Pure Blood", and was still taken out by Harry and the Prophecy. Lucius Malfoy is Minister of Magic while Crabbe Sr is Head of Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Goyle Sr is Senior Secretary to the Minister (Right-Hand man). Dumbledore has all same titles and is still Headmaster of Hogwarts, but is _friends_ with the Minister. Death Eaters are still Death Eaters, but different people are DE's. Aberforth Dumbledore _used_ to be Minister of Magic and was instrumental in making changes, but has retired.

AN2:Slavery has been in effect since the end of World War II, but only for the Magical World. Not necessarily focused on Muggle-born either. Instead, it's focused on witches first and muggleborn second. A muggleborn wizard has a chance to be declared free, where a witch must be paid for or married to be freed. Only three wizards in the history of the world have been rich enough to buy a slave's freedom. Status of wizards are determined at First Sorting at Hogwarts (or the other schools) by the level of control they have over their magic, or the strength of their magic. Witches are slaves no matter what, even purebloods. Half-blood wizards can go either way, while purebloods _usually_ go through it as a matter of pride or tradition. It has happened where a pureblood wizard was made into a slave because he couldn't perform at the time of sorting.

AN3:Master/Slave relationships are unique upon the set. First Year Wizards get to choose one slave amongst their own class, most often a female, but sometimes a male gets chosen too. If there is an uneven number, or a witch is not chosen, she is then offered to the rest of the school population, starting from 2nd year and going up. The Master is the one that decides if the slave may learn real magic or not and what manner of education they receive. Also, arrangements can be made between families so that a daughter (witch) is given by the family to one specific wizard, even if he is older or younger than she is. Family comes before Institution. Witches (and wizard slaves) are viewed the same as pets at Hogwarts, where the wizard is responsible for them in all things and they are appreciated for any special talents or appearance but beyond that the relationships are considered private and displaying anything for others to see is often considered rude. Not taboo, just rude.

AN4:Slave quarters and slave courses are mandatory for all slaves, male and female. Which courses are often chosen for witches by their masters, but the _Induction to Indentured Servitude_ class is mandatory for both witches and wizard slaves. The slave quarters are dungeon barracks attached to each house. Everyone gets Sorted into their Houses first and then demonstrates their magical ability before finally being sorted into slaves and masters. The slaves are immediately collared and chained to their master and made to recite a binding oath that ensures they truly are the slave of their chosen master. Masters can petition to have their slaves stay with them in their dorm room, but only for Third Year and above. The petition can of course be denied.

AN5:Harry chooses Hermione as his slave during First Year, Ron (still Harry's best friend) chooses Lavender Brown, Neville (who barely passes the magic test) takes Pavarti Patil, and Seamus Finnigan screws the pooch and fails the test to become Dean Thomas's manservant, while Dean passes with flying colors, literally. Draco had an arrangement to take Pansy as his slave while both Crabbe and Goyle get passes and no slaves. Second Year, Ron begs Harry to make a deal with his parents, who equally "beg" and an arrangement is made where Ginny becomes Harry's second slave. Luna Lovegood is not chosen by anyone of her year, her reputation preceding her, and Harry (feeling sorry for her) takes her when she is offered to the remaining houses and years.

AN6:UNLESS the witch (or wizard slave) pass with NEWTs from one of the Three Schools, or marries their master or some other Free Wizard, even if her freedom is bought and paid for, the witch can be "captured" and "sold" to a new master if ever found "wandering free", never to be returned to the master that "was careless enough to let her escape", even if she was let go willingly. Sometimes there will be re-education involved.

AN7:Last thing; slaves are not permitted to wear robes. Anything else, or nothing else, but never robes. Not even married witches, but robes are a sign of Wizards and not permitted by law. Most are forced to wear rags.

Story:

It all began with the argument that day at the Dumbledore residence in Godric's Hollow. Several different things could have or even should have happened that day, such as the death of the youngest Dumbledore, Ariana. Or the estrangement of Albus and Aberforth and the end of the... friendship between Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald.

This time around, something very different happened. Gellert controlled his temper. Albus did not keep his mind closed to what Gellert was saying to him and actually listened. Aberforth came home late. Ariana did not pick up a wand to cast a spell that day. Aberforth, Albus, and Gellert did not fight that day.

What did happen was that Gellert saw something in Ariana that was the answer to a problem he'd been having for quite some time. When Aberforth came home that day, it had already been done and Albus had given his sister to Gellert as a slave. Aberforth nearly killed them, but Ariana herself stopped him, revealing that she was actually better this way. More... in control, because she wasn't the one in control, Grindelwald was.

Thus started a new movement in the Wizarding World. Grindelwald did not attack people, he convinced them of his point of view and gained immediate support all over the world. Not unanimous, but enough to start a real movement of change. Dumbledore went to Hogwarts and started making changes there, while Aberforth got drunk for a year, then went to the Ministry and started working that side of his brother and Grindelwald's campaign. By 1941, the whole of the Wizarding World had changed to its very foundation.

Witches, who'd always been the fairer sex, were now second class citizens, though a considerable step up from House Elves. Muggleborn witches and wizards were being isolated, but those that 'passed muster' became as prominent and powerful as the oldest of the purebloods. Except for the witches that is. While the Muggle world underwent the Sexual Revolution and Women's Rights were being changed to equality, the complete opposite was happening in the Wizarding World.

Witches weren't seen as weaker, not at all. There were still plenty of Famous Witch cards in the Chocolate Frogs collection. They were, however, seen as being naturally submissive. Even the witches that were clearly anything but submissive in daily life were seen as being at the core a submissive witch and thus a slave to wizards. Weak wizards, more often muggleborn that had no training, were treated as submissive themselves and made into slaves alongside their sub-counterparts.

By the 1950's, a full generation after Dumbledore's social changes, there was no more question or resentment. Things were the way they were and nobody, except a few malcontents, wanted them to change.

Then, Albus Dumbledore met Tom Marvolo Riddle.

Albus had suspicions from the start, but when the muggle-raised orphan demonstrated excellent control over his magic at Hogwarts, and thus was not a submissive, he paid even closer attention. Tom quickly gathered a group of loyal... "friends" at school and could have been said to "rule the school" as far as popularity went. Muggleborn were no longer viewed as being second-rate or freaks of magic. Quite the opposite if the muggleborn in question was able to pass muster, then he usually became as popular as the richest pureblood.

After school however, Tom disappeared from all view and Lord Voldemort showed up a few years later. Voldemort was interested in only one thing; chaos. He was a dark wizard of the darkest sort and his goals were a mystery to all but himself. He recruited from all over, Pureblood and Muggleborn alike, but mostly from Slytherin ranks or those with a penchant for dark magic.

For over ten years, he lead a campaign of terror the likes of which the Wizarding World had never seen, enough that soon people feared to even speak his name. Until the night of the Prophecy...

Severus Snape had wanted his muggleborn friend to be his personal slave at Hogwarts, but Lily Evans was sorted into Gryffindor and was tormented into being James Potter's slave for seven years. That Potter allowed his slave to go to class and learn was surprising, but hardly unorthodox. That he allowed her to have wizard friends was even more so! That they eventually fell in love and he freed her by marrying her wasn't as surprising after seven years of it at Hogwarts.

Snape, however, had been trying to get Lily back ever since then, but with little success. One of the reasons he joined the Death Eaters was because of promises made that he could have his pick of slaves from their victims, particularly Lily Potter. That the prophecy he listened in on halfway pointed towards Lily and her son, spawn of Potter, made Severus hesitate for only a breath of time before he flew to the Dark Lord and told him of all he'd heard.

A year later, on Halloween, Voldemort finally gained the information he required and struck. Before midnight had even passed, the whole of the Wizarding World was celebrating in wild jubilation. The Dark Lord had been vanquished by the Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter.

That Harry Potter was then sent to live with muggle relatives who did their best to treat the boy like a slave of their own didn't really matter to them, only that they no longer had reasons to be afraid. Of course Dumbledore saw things differently, but like Voldemort, his reasons were known only to himself.

Then came the day that Harry Potter was to be brought back into the folds. As expected, the Dursley's were incredibly dismayed to discover that they would be losing their slave. At least that's the way Dumbledore chose to explain why they destroyed all of Harry's Hogwarts letters and then ran away with him to a very remote fishing cabin on a bare bit of rock in the English Channel.

So, Dumbledore sent the most trusted of his own slaves to retrieve the boy and guide him into life in the Wizarding World. It was unusual for a wizard that passed the initial demonstration to later be made into a slave, but in the case of Rubeus Hagrid it was a tragic tale all around. The fact that _all_ of the Hogwarts staff happened to be the collected slaves of one Albus Dumbledore was viewed as a tribute to the man's power and generosity, publicly anyway. Privately, the whole staff didn't know what to make of their master.

Hagrid, however, was a good sort and was grateful to be taken in by such a great wizard as Albus Dumbledore, even if it stripped him of his freedom and privacy. So he happily went and did whatever Dumbledore commanded of him, no matter what.

Some things just cannot be changed, no matter how much everything else changes, some things will still happen the same way in exactly the same manner. Such as Hagrid busting down the door of the Dursley's hideaway on the bit of rock in the middle of the sea in the middle of the night and informing Harry Potter of his heritage. And Dudley getting a nice pigtail to go with the rest of him.

Hagrid then took Harry to Diagon Alley in the morning to get his school supplies and to further introduce the boy to the world he would be part of soon. That he also retrieved a very specific item only hours before the vault it was kept in was broken into is more of a side-note to the current story.

After getting his wand and finishing the last of his shopping, Harry was allowed a bit of time to process what his life had become and finally take in a bit more of his surroundings. When he did, the very first thing he noticed was the status of all the women, er witches. To be more specific, all the wizards were dressed in pointed hats and flowing wizard robes and carried their wands with authority.

Every single witch within sight of young Harry Potter was collared, (sometimes with jewels, sometimes with fashionable chokers, but mostly just plain iron or leather bands), had their head bowed, and was always a step behind or to the side of a wizard. Their mode of dress varied as much as their faces in most cases. Some were wearing pretty sundresses, others were dressed much like muggles, some had plain servant clothes, while others wore little more than tattered rags held together by string. In fact, the only females that Harry did not see dressed like this were very young girls, younger than 11, being shuttled between their parents like a prized possession that might soon be stolen away from them.

This confused Harry, mostly in questioning why he hadn't noticed earlier, but then again he'd had a very exciting day learning that he was a wizard and everything else. Other questions prompted him to ask why witches were acting this way and why everyone considered this behavior so common like it happened everyday.

When he finally had a chance to confront Hagrid about it, the half-giant was even more flustered than the conversation about Voldemort, who people still couldn't say the name of. After about three full mugs of magically enhanced alcohol, Hagrid explained about the changes of the Wizard World and how the slave system worked.

Despite his modern influences and morally-obligated outrage at the concept of modern day slavery, Harry found himself greatly intrigued by the idea and how the Wizard World approached it. For one thing, there wasn't any kind of "slave block" or humiliating display of buying and selling people like merchandise.

Quite the opposite in fact, as he saw when they were leaving the Alley one woman walking along on her own, carrying a purse and everything, but still collared. Some random wizard, they all started to blend after a while wearing pointed hats and the same robes, came up to her and tried to 'claim' her right then and there. Hagrid had paused to watch nervously, but either wouldn't or _couldn't_ help her with the situation as it was obviously she needed it. Instead, practically every other wizard in the Alley turned on the man and glared at him, until one wearing crimson red robes and a badge across a sash stepped up and quickly resolved the matter. The wizard was a known abuser of his own slaves and had often approached random witches in the past, attempting to steal them or 'claim' them if they looked to be unattached.

The Auror, what Hagrid called the constable that had stepped forward, sent the slave, er... witch on her way and took the wizard away for questioning. Hagrid explained the man would probably lose at least another of his own slaves to the Ministry, if not all of them if he wasn't careful. The friendly giant went on to explain that owning slaves was a responsibility, not a right. At least that's what Dumbledore always told him.

When Harry asked what would happen to the wizard's slave or slaves that were taken from him, Hagrid replied, "Well 'Arry, I don't too rightly know. Tha's sumthin Master Dumbledore would know how ta deal with I reckun. Usually ya hear of stuff like this happenin' every now an again, and there are such a thing as Ministry Slaves. They do the menial stuff in the Ministry, paperwork and the like. Although ya always hear stories. I meself belong to Albus Dumbledore, greatest wizard that ever did live. Great man Dumbledore, great man. So I do not know what goes on with the Ministry Slaves really. Don't reckun anyone does, less they work there."

"Oh, OK," Harry demurely replied, fearing he'd already asked too many questions as it was. The Dursley's hated it when he asked questions.

After they left the Alley, Hagrid gave Harry around ten times as much money as needed to take the Underground back to 4 Privet Drive, but thankfully because of the Dursley's shortsightedness of renting the cabin for a month and Hagrid and Harry taking the only boat on the island until the caretaker returned, in a month, Harry now had the entire house to himself for the entire month of August.

Doubly thanks to Hagrid's thoughtfulness, Harry now had enough cash to take care of himself and call a taxi into the city for almost daily trips to Diagon Alley and then one final trip to Kings Cross Station for the train ride to school. Of course that didn't mean that he did take taxi rides to the Alley every single day, but he did go back on his own every once in a while to either get a new book, look at the racing brooms on display, get some more potion ingredients, or his get some of Florean's ice cream.

He also got used to seeing women going submissively everywhere wearing collars in every mode of dress imaginable to an eleven year old boy. The only thing he never saw witches wearing were the flowing colored robes that all the wizards wore. Sometimes the witches wore dresses that could almost be the same as the robes, but were still clearly not. Head-wear, such as hats, bonnets, even veils, on the other hand seemed to be a reserved specialty he noticed. There were women, witches that wore hats and head coverings, but he noticed the trend very quickly that it wasn't everyone, which meant something special.

After his third visit to the Alley, he finally figured it out, and asked the Ice Cream Parlor vendor just to confirm. The only 'slaves' that were allowed to wear head coverings were those that were no longer 'slaves' exactly. They were witches that had married their masters, the wizards that owned them. Any men not wearing hats of some kind could usually be counted on being slaves, especially if that one wore a collar too. It was apparently a fad that had started in the last year or so, and wasn't necessarily a real symbol of status, but wearing head coverings was viewed as a public sign of being a master of slaves. Thus all free wizards, or "true wizards" as Florean had told him, wore hats to display that they were dominant masters who owned slaves.

Of course the standard exceptions applied, anyone under the age of attending Hogwarts was exempt and weren't expected to either be a slave or own a slave at that age. The Ministry had been quite clear on that point, making it not only illegal, but punishable with prison sentence if one was found dealing in slaves that were underage, which meant younger than eleven. The law also made it impossible for anyone but Hogwarts Faculty or other Hogwarts students from owning anyone that was 'of age', as it proved that the girl (most often) or boy had been kidnapped from her or his parents.

Apparently there was _supposedly_ a black market trade for such things, specializing in muggleborn witches and/or wizards that hadn't been 'discovered' yet. Every adult he spoke with regarding the possibility quickly denied it and any thought of it happening, which made Harry quite certain that it _was_ going on. He'd seen the same looks on the Dursleys faces often enough to recognize the look of someone hiding a deep dark secret they don't want anyone else to even find out about.

For the most part, however, Harry spent the majority of his time reading his school books and practicing with his wand as he finally found something that he was good at and he did not want to disappoint. In a way, it was very good of him to do so as in his reading he read _Hogwarts, A History_, which had been revised only twice since it was originally written almost a thousand years ago. The most recent revision was only about thirty years previous now, and in it explained the opening ceremony for First Years.

Harry had to read the chapter about ten times before he really believed it, but given that the author of the revision was one A. Dumbledore, he chose to err on the side of caution and spent an extra hour a day practicing with his wand until he could do at least ten of the first spells from his school book _Standard Book of Spells Grade 1_ and all before the final week of August.

He also spent just as much time memorizing the books for all his other classes as he had only the barest of clues as to what would be required to 'Pass Muster' as the author of the revised copy of _Hogwarts, A History_ really meant. While it talked about new students 'proving they have control over magic', it did not go on to explain if it was a verbal quiz, a written test, or having to cast spells successfully, but it did go on to say that Sorting was done first, and then those that 'Pass Muster' choose of those in their house that were submissive and required control.

He _did_ know what that meant.

If there was one thing Harry understood better than most, it was what being a slave _really_ meant. He'd been one his whole life to the Dursleys. He did not want to be someone else's slave, not after everything he'd already been through!

So focused did Harry become on _not_ being someone else's slave, that he didn't spend any of his time contemplating what it would mean to have a slave of his very own. Even in his dreams, it was only a passing fantasy and his mind had much to focus on.

By the time September 1st rolled around, Harry had actually mastered the first three chapters of spells in his school books, and had a strong familiarity with the remainder of spells. He'd memorized the names of every plant in his Herbology book, as well as numerous facts regarding them, and the same for every potion in his Potions book. He could transfigure wood into metal and vice versa, though he had no match sticks to try and turn into needles, he made due with other objects around the house. He could also change the shape of just about anything into anything else, though it would remain the same material.

Hedwig, his owl, was given enormous freedom and her cage was little more than a a one-time-use of carrying her from Diagon Alley to Privet Drive. The rest of the time she was outside flying, sleeping on a perch stand that Harry had transfigured for her out of one of Dudley's broken wooden toys, doing her business outdoors, and traveling was spent riding around on one of Harry's shoulders. So long as there was a leash on one of the owl's legs that Harry could grab and control her with, the muggles didn't think anything of it.

On the day that he was to leave Privet Drive forever, in his opinion, Harry woke up early and had all of his things packed in the trunk and ready to go a full ten minutes before the taxi arrived. From there it was simply a matter of letting the driver help him get a trolley and wrestling his trunk onto it and then finding the entrance to the Platform as the people that had built the station neglected to advertise how to get onto Platform 9 ¾! Thankfully, help soon arrived in the form of a witch, wearing a scarf over her head to corral her mane of wild red hair, leading at least five youths that just had to be her own children through the "Place full of muggles" towards the wall halfway between platforms nine and ten.

Harry quickly caught up and was introduced to the Weasley's. Somethings always remain the same.

Except, once he was through, Harry nervously waited until Mrs. Weasley, Molly she told him after a bit of conversation, came through and asked her what she'd been doing leading her children onto the platform. He'd, of course meant what was she doing going around without her husband/master leading her around, and he got his answer and a bit more just in a more roundabout manner than he'd expected.

"Well, you see dear," Molly explained as they walked along behind her children, who were racing to find good seats for those going to Hogwarts this year, "Arthur, my Husband, he works in the Ministry, and they're very busy this time of year, so he just has no time to see the children off every time. I also remember what it was like, going off to Hogwarts the first time." He saw her suppress a gulp of apprehension.

"And when I saw you there dear, I just couldn't let you flop around unaided. You're going to have a time of it as it is, I'm sure. Muggleborn children always do. So difficult to pass muster these days. Not that I don't think you can do it, dear, it's just..." she trailed off, looking around nervously.

"I... it's all right ma'am. Thank you very much for your help," Harry nodded and left to find a seat for himself, Hedwig still comfortably on his shoulder.

"Oh dear, I forgot to ask the poor boy's name," Molly muttered to herself, half afraid she'd just sent some poor child into bondage with nary a word of warning. At least until her twin boys came up and started talking about Harry Potter being on the train and the witch's eyes went wide with realization. The messy black hair! The green eyes! He'd been right in front of her and she hadn't even seen it until it was too late.

It was all she could do to keep Ginny from racing onto the train and making sure all her boys were on it before it left, promptly at 11 o'clock on the dot.

Harry and Ron sat in the same compartment and soon became fast friends. Hermione and Neville showed up and while Harry couldn't help notice both Ron and Neville giving Hermione some 'looks', everything happened much the same as it was meant to. Even Malfoy with Crabbe and Goyle showed up to be insulted by Harry's lack of acceptance of bullies. Hagrid was there to greet the First Years and lead them across the lake in boats to get their first look at Hogwarts Castle. Professor McGonagall, who Harry noticed wore a fine red and gold choker necklace and a pointed black witches hat, gathered the First Years and lead them into the Great Hall and then pulled out an old hat and a stool.

Harry also noticed a cordoned off area just to the side of the Head Table.

Everything was soon explained to the nervous First Years.

TBC...?


	38. Tri KungFu Tournament

Title:Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Kung Fu

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:J.K. Rowling owns Harry Potter and all characters and Hogwarts. Everything else, based in both fiction and reality, and anything based on something/somebody else is used without permission, but meant in the best way possible under the clause; Imitation is the sincerest form of Flattery.

Summary:Hogwarts doesn't teach just magic anymore, but Kung Fu fighting and Martial Arts of every kind.

Story:

Prologue:"The REAL Triwizard Tournament!"

"HARRY POTTER!"

"Oh crap, what is it this time?" the young boy moaned.

The whole hall was dead silent, thus everyone could hear his moaning just fine, as the only other sound present in the silence was that of the crackling flames coming from the Goblet of Fire. Silently, Harry stood up and walked down the aisle towards Professor Dumbledore, who was standing beside the blazing golden cup.

"Yes, Professor Dumbledore?" he asked politely.

In response, the old wizard simply held out the burned slip of paper with his name on it. Only his name.

Harry frowned and glared at the Goblet of Fire, then asked the Headmaster outright, "Didn't you tell us to put both our name _and_ the name of our school onto our entries? And that's not my handwriting! I did not put my name in that cup, therefore, I am under no..." His rant was interrupted by the flames of the cup, quite suddenly, going out, "...obligation... to... participate in... this... tournament... Bugger."

"I'm afraid it no longer matters, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore sighed. "Go on. Join the other Champions."

Harry just sighed again, before his frustration mounted and he let out a scream and punched the nearest object, which just so happened to be the stone pedestal the Goblet of Fire was set upon. The stone cracked and shattered, pieces flying off in all directions as the goblet succumbed to gravity and began to fall to the ground. Dumbledore, moving faster than most would think a man of his age could move, spun around, whipping his cloak up around him to billow it out enough to catch and cushion the Goblet before flinging it through the air in a precise arc that landed it in the carrying case it traveled in, said case sealing itself shut the moment the Goblet of Fire was safely tucked into it.

"None of that, Harry," Dumbledore consoled his student. "Go on. We'll be in shortly."

Still grumbling to himself, Harry stomped out of the Great Hall and into the side room where the other three champions for the Triwizard Tournament had entered after their names being called. The moment he entered, he was beset by a pair of throwing axes flying through the air, narrowly missing his face as he twisted and ducked out of the way. Splitting and rolling away from the door, he took in the situation in an instant.

The Hogwarts Champion, 7th Year student Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff house, was standing in front of the fireplace, his yellow and black robes discarded to display the fighting vest he kept on underneath them, leaving his big arms bare and flexing. He was set into a defensive stance, his feet spaced evenly and his hands molded to the badger claw shield style. His eyes were darting back and forth between the other two champions.

The Durmstrang Champion, renowned martial artist and professional quidditch player, Viktor Krum stood in his solid black gi, his own arms bare and flexing while his closed fists settled into a stance halfway between attack and defense, good for countering and blocking, his feet set moderately far apart as well. The way his eyes were focused solely upon the last remaining champion told Harry that once this man set himself upon a target, there was absolutely nothing that would stop him. Nothing.

Finally, the Beaubaxton Champion, French femme fatale, Fleur Delacour. She still bore her soft blue robes, but she also had her wand out and pointed straight at Krum, her nostrils flaring and her eyes wide and very, very angry, Harry began to understand how it was he'd been attacked the moment he entered. Of course he observed all this in less than a breath of time, so he was forced to continue watching as Fleur cast another few spells, probably hexes or full curses, at Krum, who ducked and weaved around the jets of light while reaching around and tossing some of the numerous weapons that were mounted on the walls at the fair-haired witch.

"Did I come at a bad time?" Harry asked Cedric as the both of them were forced to dodge fire from both dueling champions.

"Harry? What are you doing here?" the 7th Year asked the 4th Year. "Did they send you in to get us?"

"Not exactly... DUCK!" Harry quickly pulled his fellow Hogwarts Champion off the ground and into the air, where they both spun around to further dodge amassed spell fire and thrown weapons.

"That wasn't a duck maneuver, Harry, that was a jump," Cedric lectured, until they both bent down and rolled over to the side of the room, "_That_ was a duck maneuver."

"Fine, next time I'll scream... DODGE!" they were once again running all over the walls, ceiling, ducking, jumping, and just overall dodging another round of crossfire. "Might I ask what it is they think they're doing?" Harry screamed at Cedric.

"Krum... might have said something about Miss Delacour's figure that she didn't appreciate," Cedric replied, while jumping from one wall, to the ceiling, and then spinning on his axis all the way to the ground, where he did a few back flips to avoid another dozen of the swords Krum had sent flying.

"What? I mean, seriously, what did he say, because I, for one of no doubt many, think it's a very nice figure," said Harry, momentarily safe in his corner position.

"Something about Veelas," was all Cedric would say, which was unfortunately enough to bring Fleur's temper back to the fore as she redoubled her curse-casting.

"And that's an insult?!" Harry was confused, as Veelas were known as another species of nymphs, also known as the most beautiful feminine magical creatures known to exist. Cedric only shrugged.

Thankfully, they were spared further exercise by the timely arrival of all the Headmasters/mistress and the government officials in charge of the Tournament, as well as Professor Moody, Hogwarts' Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher.

"I trust we're not interrupting, Miss Delacour, Mr. Krum," Professor Dumbledore interrupted them.

Like two kids with their hands caught in the candy jar, both champions sheepishly retreated, the Beaubaxton girl putting away her wand and the professional quidditch player placing the mace and flail in his hands back on the wall where they belonged.

"Would either of you care to explain what it was you were doing a moment ago?" Professor Dumbledore asked, with a merry twinkling in his eyes.

"'E started it!" Fleur screamed. "'E called me a _Veela salope_! A, how you say, easy woman!"

"She is part Veela, is she not?" Krum defended himself with a surly pout.

"Oh, this is gonna be fun," Harry sarcastically remarked as Fleur launched into another flurry of swear words and raised her wand to add literal curses to the mix.

"Enough, Mademoiselle Delacour," Madame Maxime, the large and tall headmistress from Beaubaxton.

"Oui, Madame Maxime," the blond witch ducked her head and put away her wand.

"Now then," Professor Dumbledore clapped his hands, "Perhaps it's time to get this show on the road, as the saying goes. Mr. Crouch, Mr. Bagman, if you please?"

"Oh yes, yes, it's quite exciting. The Tournament hasn't even really started, and already a major upset," Ludo Bagman, Department Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, said excitedly. "It turns out, through no fault of his own, that Mr. Potter here, is our _fourth champion_! Isn't that wonderful?"

"WHAT?!" the three present champions all shouted.

"That's not fair," Cedric of all people protested.

"Hey, I'll quit, forfeit, whatever you need me to do to get out of this, just say the word," Harry immediately stepped forward.

"Harry," Professor Dumbledore gave him a look.

"I'm afraid," Barty Crouch interrupted, "that because his name came out of the Goblet of Fire at the appointed time, Mr. Potter has entered into the same contract as the rest of you, and he _must_ compete."

"But I did _not_ put my name in that cup!" Harry shouted. "Isn't there some kind of loophole, like, I have to be willing or at the least _I_ have to put my name in for me to be eligible? Something?"

"Normally, there are security measures in place," Crouch answered him, "such as the Goblet of Fire recognizing that the name on the paper is not that of the one placing it, and will simply consume the note and not consider it. The limitations on who is allowed to place their names for consideration is a new policy put in this year, and as such is not part of the built-in security measures."

"Like spitting out only _three_ names instead of _four_!" Harry screamed.

"There must be something we can do, Hogwarts cannot have two champions!" Igor Karkaroff exclaimed. "I insist that we resubmit all the names until the rest of us have two champions as well!"

"I am afraid that is impossible. The Goblet of Fire has gone out and will not ignite again until the start of the next tournament," Professor Dumbledore informed them.

"How fortunate for you," Karkaroff growled at the old man.

"HELLO!" Harry suddenly shouted. Everyone looked at him, startled.

"This is not about school pride anymore!" he screamed. "People have been known to DIE during this tournament! That's _WHY_ there was a no one under seventeen rule added this year, remember?! I'm _fourteen years old_! WHAT KIND OF CHANCE DO YOU THINK I HAVE OF SURVIVING LET ALONE WINNING!! Somebody is trying to get me killed, and the Tournament is just the how."

He turned to the other champions, and said to them, "This may all be about honor and glory and respect for your school for you all. But for me... this just became a matter of survival."

"See!" Cedric interrupted. "This isn't fair! Harry Potter is the genius prodigy that could defeat a wraith in his first year, slaughtered a thirty-foot basilisk in his second, and can duel on level with any 7th Year or Professor! _Now_ he has motivation to survive and do well in the tournament... the rest of us don't have a chance!"

"Hmph," Krum snorted and crossed his arms.

"Sillee boy," Fleur scoffed. "'E is but a child. 'E is no match for us, ze champions of our schools."

A bit irked, and still angry over this latest situation, Harry stepped forward and asked, "You think I can't handle myself? Fine. Let's go. I'll fight all three... er, two of you right here, right now." He'd started to include Cedric, until the Hufflepuff Prefect scuttled behind Professor Dumbledore.

"You cannot be serious," Fleur laughed.

Krum snorted, then picked up the mace he'd put down earlier and threw it right at the 4th Year's head. Only for the 4th Year in question to explode into action, leaping up with a flying crane kick to the mace to send it upwards, grab it himself and then throwing it right back at twice the speed. Startled, Krum batted the flying projectile to the side and moved forward to teach the brat a few lessons, only to be met halfway by a flurry of punches. They exchanged punches, blocks, counters, and even a few kicks for a minute, until Potter suddenly ducked down in a sweep kick, which sent the duck-footed Durmstrang Champion off his feet, followed by a rising dragon kick that sent him careening into the wall.

Equally startled as everyone else, Fleur took a moment to pull out her wand, amazed at the speed the two men were moving at, even more so when the younger sent the more experienced and stronger looking flying back. It was enough to jolt her out of her freeze, however, as she started up another flurry of curses and hexes, just to teach the boy a lesson he would not soon forget.

Only for him to turn it back on her as he pulled his own wand out of _somewhere_, and shout out the spell, "PROTEGO!" A clear barrier formed between them and every single one of her spells bounced right off of it, before ricocheting back towards her. She barely had enough time to duck under cover, let alone raise her own shield. When she glanced back up, Potter and Krum were back in the heat of it, exchanging blows with speed and strength that shocked the French woman.

The more interesting fact is that as soon as Harry's wand had appeared and cast the shield charm, it had disappeared. For the moment though, he was displaying an interesting skill of martial arts as he blocked, countered, attacked, counter-attacked and dodged Krum, who likewise fought back with equal fervor.

They quickly built into a rhythm and both knew that the first to make a mistake would suffer for it, and it just so happened to be Krum, as he was just a hair slower on his next block and Harry's punch to his lower abdomen grazed his hip, setting him up for a combo to the back of his right knee, a right cross to his shoulder, and a three-hit knock back to his upper chest and an uppercut to the chin sent him flying back. The speed at which the fourth year student had taken advantage from the momentary distraction shocked the burly upperclassman, even as he slowly got back to his feet.

"Krum! Enough!" Karkaroff shouted to his student. "Dumbledore, call off your dog!"

"Dog?" Harry turned, incredulous at the insult.

Scowling, Krum did not stop, instead, seeing Harry distracted a bit himself, he took full advantage by aiming a fast straight punch to the back of the boy's neck. A moment later, he felt impact, but when he looked, he was due to be shocked again. Harry's right arm had shot around faster than Krum's flying fist and grabbed it by the wrist with enough strength to stop Krum cold where he stood. This wasn't an impossible feat, but what made it so shocking was that Harry still faced the group of Professors and by all accounts had not even glanced back at Krum, nor adopted any additional leverage.

Stunned, Krum fell back several paces when Harry finally released him, and he wasn't the only one staring at the young man in stark amazement.

"'Ow did you do zat?"Fleur demanded to know.

Confused, Harry turned from the Professors to the blond French girl, and asked, "Do what?"

"Stop 'iz attack wizout lookeeng," she clarified.

"Oh," Harry shrugged, then turned to glance at Krum and back at Fleur, "He breathes loud. And his feet make a distinctive sound when he moves, and my friends told me that Durmstrang teaches Dark Arts and dirty fighting, and when your back is turned, there are exactly three places someone who fights dirty will attack. The back, for amateurs, the tendons for assassins, and the back of the neck or base of the skull for those that consider themselves true fighters. And, no offense Krum, but you don't look like an assassin."

"See!" Cedric exclaimed. "This is completely unfair! Harry's a prodigy genius and has been since his first year at Hogwarts! We don't stand a chance against him!"

"Not to worry, not to worry, Mr. Diggory," Professor Dumbledore calmed the 7th Year. "The Triwizard Tournament does not involve solely a martial arts tournament, although that is scheduled for the end of the year anyway. There are other tests, and merits to award victory to the various school champions. Being a good fighter is only one part of the challenges you will face."

"Indeed," Mr. Crouch stepped forward. "Each of the challenges is designed to test all of you in ingenuity, intelligence, courage, and integrity. Needless to say, part of that will also require testing your power and strength in the same tests."

"Zat steel does not explain ze boy being allowed to compete!" Fleur protested once more.

"Yeah!" the other two champions echoed.

"Well... Yeah!" Harry turned around and shouted back at the adults himself.

"The Goblet of Fire represents a magical contract. All of your names came out of it, and there is nothing left to do," Mr. Crouch answered them, "The four of you must compete in the Triwizard Tournament."

Harry sighed and groaned. Krum and Fleur both looked insulted, though Krum just looked surlier and Fleur was the epitome of a pissed off female in heat. Cedric felt like groaning himself, but ultimately just looked like he was starting to regret ever putting his name in the Goblet in the first place.

"Fine!" Harry threw up his arms in frustration. "I get to trade off tests and a lot of classwork for extra training, and I'm all about that. Well... most days anyway. What's the scoop? What are the tasks we have to complete? Any chance of giving up hints on how to beat whatever they are?"

Mr. Bagman, the Yin to Mr. Crouch's Yang and the only one in the room that saw Harry competing as a good thing, answered for the rest of the adults. "Oh come now Harry, what would be the fun in that if we gave the whole thing away? But no, seriously, the only thing that we can tell you right now is that the First Task is set for November 24, and it is one designed to test your resilience, ingenuity, and above all else, you courage!"

"Physical task, requiring us to pass an overwhelming obstacle in order to retrieve some prize, or possibly even a clue about the latter two tasks," Harry summed up with a bored tone. "Right then! I'm off to start training, first thing tomorrow. Right now, I'm still starving, and I'm going back out there to finish the Halloween Feast. Coming Cedric?"

"Uh, right... I mean, be right there Harry!" Cedric immediately followed after the departed Potter. He paused next to Hogwarts' Headmaster and whispered, "I think all things considered, even if I have to do the task alone, I'd rather pair up with the Potter Prodigy than anything else."

"Oh dear," Dumbledore muttered as the two boys left, "Harry just got himself a new training partner."

Every single creature in the castle, at that moment, shivered as though a cold wind had swept over them. Even the ghosts and elves. Peeves, who'd been listening in, considered going on a long overdue vacation.

To Be Continued...?


	39. Highland Ninja : Immortal

Part Two:_Immortal_

_Training Area 12_

_The Next Day_

_7AM_

Naruto landed in a crouch as his rush payed off and he made it to Area 12 right on time. If there was one thing that ticked him off worse than perverts, it was being late, and he wasn't about to become a hypocrite. That's what his nindo was based around even! If he said he'd be at some place by a certain time, then he damn well would be there on time!

"You're late," Colin said from a few feet away.

"I AM NOT! I'M RIGHT ON TIME!" Naruto screamed at his fellow Immortal. As with yesterday, Naruto had felt his chakra buzz the closer he got to the meeting point, and it only subdued after he was face to face with his fellow Immortal.

"What is that?" Naruto asked him, once the feeling finally faded.

"Late? Being late means you are not on time, not early, and not where you agreed to be _when_ I told you to be here by. I know they said you were stupid, but come on!" Colin mocked him.

Blushing furiously, Naruto growled at the man and snapped at him, "That's not what I meant and you know it! What is with my chakra, heck my whole body... shaking every time I get near you?"

"Hmph," Colin snorted, walking closer to the tall blue-eyed blond. "Some of us call it the 'Buzz', the feeling we get when another Immortal is nearby. Sort of a homing beacon that we use to identify others of our kind. Most don't really call it anything, they just know what it means and use it as such."

"Use it?" Naruto questioned. Colin nodded.

"I told you yesterday, but a lot was going on and being said so it probably hasn't sunk in yet," he said. "Immortals fight to the death in something that is only known as _the_ _Game_. There are rules to the Game, and supposedly a Prize. The Prize goes to the last Immortal, but for there to be a last Immortal, you kind of have to get rid of all the other Immortals on the planet. Thus, the Game."

"That doesn't really explain anything..." Naruto had multiple sweat-drops on the back of his head and a very confused expression on his face.

"The Game is a death match," Colin told him simply, startling Naruto out of his confusion. "Immortals killing each other in one-on-one duels, the victor of which takes the losers power and strength. Until there is only one Immortal left. That's the first rule, and the basis for the Game; _There Can Be Only One_!"

"What?" Naruto stared, horrified at what he'd just been told.

"Stop looking at me like that, I'm not here to kill you, I'm here to teach you," the older Immortal said.

"First, the rest of the rules," Colin continued. "Duels are one-on-one, but sometimes this rule is broken, so it's more of an honor code. The Immortals fight until one of them cuts off the head of the other, and the winner, or survivor, takes the loser's, or the dead one's power and strength, known as the _Quickening_. Older you are, more powerful you become, likewise if you take an older Immortal's head, you become as powerful as he was plus a little extra. When Immortals meet, they have several choices on what to do. They can fight, but they do not have to, or they can just say hello and move on, or if they've known each other previously, they may hang around for a couple of years, it depends on the situation. When an experienced Immortal finds a newly 'killed' Immortal, if they're not Headhunters, they will train the new Immortal on the basics of how to survive the Game and then move on. The older Immortal is thus the younger's Teacher. To put it simply, I am now your Teacher."

"Oh, something I neglected to mention," Colin added as they walked through the training grounds into the forest, "An Immortal only becomes Immortal after they die for the first time."

"HUH?!!" his Student exclaimed.

"You grow up normally, same as any other person on the planet, and then you die in a violent, horrible death, most likely, and then you get better," he explained. "Simply put, you died. The Fox or whatever healing factor you might have had before did not save you that day at the Valley of the End a week ago. You died, Naruto. And you can 'die' again, but you'll just heal and get up and walk away a few hours later. If you get old enough, or powerful enough, you could probably heal in just a few minutes from all but decapitation."

"I... I need to sit down," Naruto said weakly, slumping against a tree and falling to the forest floor.

"It's a lot to take in," Colin agreed.

"What... what are the other rules?" Naruto asked after a few minutes to process.

"Let's see... One on one fights, winner takes losers power, There Can Be Only One, Student and Teacher, ah! The two Cardinal Rules, rules that even the most ruthless, evil, sadistic son of a bitch will follow, no matter what, even if they were to cost them the Prize eventually, _ALL _Immortals follow these two Rules! You understand?"

Naruto mutely nodded his head.

"The first, with _minor_ exceptions, such as unique individuals, you cannot reveal the truth about Immortals, the Game, the Prize, any of it, to the world. Not to anybody. As I said, there are unique individuals, but if everyone knew?" Colin paused to let him think about it. When he saw that his Student understood, he continued.

"Jiraiya and Tsunade are good examples. Neither one of them knew that the other knew until I showed up this past week. They mostly figured out who and what I was on their own, and only when I had their trust and guaranteed security did I tell them any of my own story, or explain about Immortals at all. That's one of the reasons why they waited a week to introduce us. I got here the day after you and Kakashi got back from the Valley of the End, you know?"

"I do now," Naruto grumbled, surprised. "So, Obaa-chan and Ero-Sennin didn't know about Immortals until this past week, huh? I guess they needed some time to understand it all. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it! I'm going to live forever?"

"You'd be surprised at what you can get used to," Colin chuckled, looking off into the distance. "Don't worry about that for right now. There's still the last, one unbreakable Cardinal Rule."

Naruto straightened in his seat, sensing the seriousness of what was being told to him.

"No Immortal may duel, kill, or harm another Immortal on Holy Ground. It doesn't matter whose or what Holy Ground, if it's revered and worshiped, from a church, to a burial ground, to a Holy Sanctuary, fighting there is strictly forbidden and _no one_ breaks that rule. No one."

Naruto found himself nodding his head, agreeing completely. Then his stupid mouth spoke before his brain could stop it, and he asked, "What happens if you do?" At Colin's glare, he hastily tried to apologize, "I-I mean, the consequences for everything else is kind of obvious, especially since Obaa-chan and Ero-Sennin explained to me why no one should know about Immortals, and the rest is about honor, but... what would happen?"

Colin was silent, his face taut with tension.

"There's only ever been a single record of Immortals breaking this Rule," Colin whispered. "It's just a rumor, but the rumor is enough to discourage any would-be rule breakers from ever considering it. It's not a taboo, Naruto. It's the one Unbreakable Rule that all Immortals follow, no matter what."

"But..."

"You've never seen a volcano," Colin changed the subject, but not really. "And you've never been outside of the Elemental Nations. I have. In a distant land, so far from here that you cannot conceive of just how far it is right now, there was a dormant volcano. It never even had earthquakes, just hot springs and lush landscape. A city was built atop this volcano, thought to be a harmless mountain by that point. They built temples to their gods atop that mountain volcano. Two nameless, forgotten Immortals fought in one of those temples, and they ignored the warning signs, the earthquakes and everything else... until one of them was killed and released the Quickening."

Naruto was silent, rapt with attention as Colin paused in his tale, taking a deep breath, preparing himself for the rest of the story.

"That day, the dormant volcano, with only a single days warning that normally would have been happening for weeks in advance, exploded with more force than you, or anyone else can imagine. The city was destroyed in less than a single day, not a soul survived. Especially not the _winner_ of that duel. None had ever dared break the Rule before then, and since the fools that did so were destroyed, no one else has nor will they."

"Uh... right," Naruto gulped, finally getting back to his feet. "Uh, that all the rules?"

"All the ones for the Game, yes," Colin nodded. "Now we move on to some other things to know about being an Immortal. Tell me, what's your life like here? What have you learned so far?"

_Training Area 12_

_Later That Day_

They spoke for the rest of the morning, Naruto talking about his life and training in the Village and as a ninja so far, as well as Jiraiya and Tsunade's promise to give him more advanced training if he managed to pass the next Chuunin Exams. Colin listened and occasionally made the odd comment here and there.

Finally, the conversation turned more towards what they would be doing for the next few weeks, or until Naruto could figure out enough on his own, whichever came first.

"Learning how to use a sword," Colin stated, laying out a cloth on the ground.

"So, I'll be learning kenjutsu, huh?" Naruto preened, excited at the thought of useful training.

"I didn't say I'd teach you kenjutsu," Colin said to him, pulling over a weapons case he'd already had stashed nearby. "I said you'd be learning how to use a sword. There's a difference."

"Huh? What kind of difference?"

"I'm about to show you. Pick one," Colin told him, then began laying out various weapons, most different kinds of swords, onto the cloth. "Understand, none of these will be your permanent weapon, if you ever have one. I'm just loaning it to you until you find yours, or make your own. I never bothered to learn, but I've known others that have. If you have any questions about the swords, I'll answer them and try to explain what the difference between them is. Then we'll get started. So, go ahead and choose."

"Wow," Naruto stared at all the bladed weaponry arrayed before him.

"We'll start with what you are most familiar with," Colin began, picking up each blade as he told his student a little bit about each type of weapon. "The katana. Often called the sword of the samurai. The katana is characterized by its distinctive appearance: a curved, slender, single edged blade, circular or squared guard, and long grip to accommodate two hands. The katana's unique design and in particular its sharpness require quite a few specialized precautions in handling it. It requires daily maintenance and care, but it is light and rather straightforward in its use and effectiveness. I myself use a katana, but whether you choose to wield one is entirely up to you." He placed the weapon back on the blanket and picked up the next.

"The jian is a double-edged straight sword, known as the gentleman of weapons. One-handed versions have blades varying from 45 to 80 centimeters in length. The weight of an average sword of 70-centimeter blade-length would be in a range of approximately 700 to 900 grams. There are also larger two-handed versions used for training. Though there is significant variation in length, balance, and weight of the jian, the general purpose of the jian is to be a multipurpose cut and thrust weapon capable of stabbing, as well as making both precise cuts and slashes, as opposed to specializing in one form of use."

"Related to the jian, is the dao. Primarily used for slashing and chopping, it is referred to as the General of all weapons. Dao blades are moderately curved and single-edged, though often with few inches of the back edge sharpened as well; the moderate curve allows them to be reasonably effective in the thrust. Many variations exist, and it can be adapted to most styles of martial arts, if you care to learn them."

"These two, as you'll note, are very similar," he picked up two together. "This is called an arming sword. The arming sword is overall a light, versatile weapon capable of both cut and thrust combat; and normally boasts excellent balance. Although a variety of designs fall under the heading of 'arming sword', they are most commonly recognized as single-handed double-edged swords between 30 and 32 inches in length that were designed more for cutting than thrusting. This one is called a side sword. Both slimmer and longer than it's heavier counterpart, it's known as a 'cut-and-thrust' blade. Very lightweight and easy to use, average length about 38 inches."

"Then there's the longsword, related somewhat to the arming sword, the rapier, more a civilian version of the side sword, and the broadsword, a double-edged balanced blade. Then there are the backswords, or single-edged blades. This is a scimitar," he held out a wide-edged moon-shaped curved sword. "This is known as a saber, good for cutting and slashing more than thrusting."

"Besides these, there are other options, such as the battle axe, the hook sword, the staves, even a chain whip if you want to get really fancy," Colin shrugged and gestured to the blanket. "So, make your choice. I'm not going to teach you how to use every single one of them, I'm not that good on most of them anyway. So choose."

Naruto nodded and began considering his options.

He tried every single blade, and even the axe, swinging them around a bit to get a feel for them. Finally, he just settled on the katana. Not just because it was the most familiar looking to him, but all the others just didn't feel right to him, though the dao blade was a close second. Seeing that he actually had two preferences, so to speak, Colin just grinned and left out the katana and the dao blades after packing up the rest.

"I'm not really very good at this kind of thing," Colin admitted. "I don't take many students, but that's a personal preference more than anything else. So you'll have to bear with me. For right now, just watch as I go through my own practice routine, something which you'll have to do regularly. Even Immortals need to practice."

Naruto nodded patiently, having experienced training that he needed to do daily in his ninja career so far.

The rest of the afternoon, well into the evening, Colin showed Naruto all of his practice forms for his own sword, and then showed him how to hold the blade, which turned out to be more effort than either of them had expected. At sunset, after all the instruction had been covered, Colin had Naruto duel him, and then disarmed the blond in a single move and had his blade at the new Immortal's throat before he could blink.

Naruto immediately challenged him to a rematch and it took him two moves before they were right back in the same pose. Then four moves, then six, then back to four with Naruto on his back on the ground, and just before Colin finally called it quits, Naruto surprised him and actually put Colin on the defensive for once... and then still wound up with Colin's blade at his throat. The major difference being that this time, Naruto hadn't lost his sword.

"Good, you finally learned the first lesson," Colin congratulated him, packing up the equipment. "Never EVER let go of your sword. Even if it's broken and in pieces, never let go of your sword. Until you find a new one that is..."

Sweating, gasping for breath, Naruto nodded his head once, before lifting the katana and said, "Again!"

"No, not tonight," Colin pointed to the darkening sky. "Sun's gone down and while we'll eventually get to the training with a blindfold on, you're still too new for fighting blind. You've made more progress in one day than most people could make in a year of study. Don't be in such a rush, besides, at the rate you're learning this stuff, I'll probably be out of here by the end of the week and you'll be able to go back to your life, under the guise that you're just a kid with a very unique bloodline limit. I'll meet you tomorrow morning, bright and early. Same spot, all right?"

Naruto tiredly nodded his head, then made to hand the katana back.

Colin shook his head and waved the offering off. "No, like I said, it's yours until you either find another, or learn how to make your own. By the way, I personally do not do much blacksmithing, just enough to keep by blade in good repair and a few other things. You might want to go into town tomorrow afternoon and see if you can't find somebody to teach you. At the very least you'd learn how to make ninja weapons, and you've certainly got the time to learn now."

"Yeah," Naruto began to grin, "I do! Thanks Macleod-san!"

"Call me Colin," the Immortal called back as they parted ways, then muttered under his breath, "You always have..."

_Training Area 12_

_One Week Later_

"Are the weights really necessary?" Naruto questioned, fingering the stone bands wrapped around his body, gravity seals written all over them. Currently he was standing on two three-foot-high logs, which were precariously balanced on smoothed down stones.

Colin shrugged as he watched Naruto balance himself on the logs, weighted down, and holding both of his two chosen swords, one in each hand. He casually swung his own katana, which Naruto moved his own to quickly block, wobbling a bit, but still maintaining his balance.

"Yes," he finally answered. "You've done well this past week. If it weren't for that trick with the clones that you finally figured out, you might still be learning the basics on how to use your swords. Don't think that means we're done though. Not by a long shot."

"Neither is training to be a ninja," Naruto retorted. "And now I've got a very long life in order to learn both. I just wish that learning didn't involve crazy stuff like this all the time!"

Colin shrugged.

"You're a unique person, Naruto," he said. "Unique people require unique teaching methods. You're an immortal ninja with enough raw chakra to use every single S-Rank ninjutsu in existence and still have enough left over for a shadow clone. You don't learn from reading about it, or by being 'taught' how to do it, like 90 percent of the rest of the world. Instead, you learn by doing and from figuring it out on your own."

"And wearing weights and standing on two logs while you take swings at me plays into this how?!"

"It's very easy to knock someone off their feet," Colin said as an answer. "A little force here, applied pressure there, properly shown how, a five year old could drive an adult ninja to his knees if caught unawares. The most vulnerable you will ever be is on the ground on your back or with your legs cut out from under you. Took me over a hundred years to learn the lesson myself; you must learn how to stand, before you can walk."

"Great," Naruto grumbled, blocking again, this time with his dao as Colin swung at him again, just as slow. He still wobbled a bit, but he was getting better at adapting to the force.

"How much longer are we going to do this?" he asked after another hour of Colin taking slow swings at him. He was still wobbling a bit, but he recovered every time.

"Until you fall, or say you're ready for more," was the short reply.

"Well, this slow stuff isn't going to knock me down, so show me what you've got. Just... don't attack the logs or my legs. I may be impatient, but I know I'm not ready for that yet," Naruto offered.

"Fair enough," Colin said even as he swung a moderately fast swipe at the blond's torso.

"Whoa!" Naruto cartwheeled for a moment before regaining his balance, completely unprepared for the attack. Another ten strokes, only three of which Naruto could actually block, he was on his back with the logs at his side.

"There, you fell," Colin commented. "Now get back up and we'll do it again until you're blocking every strike at that speed. No matter how many times you fall."

"Right, right," Naruto grumbled, setting the logs back up before resuming his stance, swords in hand.

Naruto fell at least a dozen more times before he started blocking every other strike, wobbling like crazy, but managing to maintain his footing. Another hour later, they were having a sword spar with Colin on the ground in front of him and with Naruto perched precariously on two logs atop smoothed stones, blocking or dodging almost every strike. They were still soft strikes, nowhere near full force, nor the amount of power they'd be if this was a real fight, but that's why they call it training.

"Good," Colin suddenly took a step back and let Naruto step down. "You're improving. Now let's try some unconventional training."

"Unconventional?!" Naruto screeched. "What the heck is this then?"

"Conventional," was the short reply.

"#$^&!"

"I'm not sure what that is, but I've fairly sure it's not a nice phrase," Colin teased back. "Follow me."

"Where?" Naruto sullenly asked, sheathing his sword as he ran to catch up.

"You'll see," was the only reply he got.

Less than half an hour later, they were standing at the top of the Hokage Monument, standing out over the still-being-constructed-face of the Fifth Hokage. Colin lead him right up to the edge so that they were only a few feet from open air and a 30-story fall to the ground, and no ledges or trees to break said fall.

"So, uh, what are we doing up here?" Naruto had to ask, looking around nervously, particularly the long drop. Sure, he was a ninja and had mastered surface-climbing, but from this particular point there was no surface to grab onto if he were to fall. He'd also forgotten his grappling line.

"A lesson in immortality," Colin replied with a pleasant smile. "Come over here."

Slowly, hesitantly, Naruto complied until they were side-by-side at the cliff's edge.

"Wow," Naruto looked over the whole of Konoha, admiring the view.

"Beautiful, no?" Colin commented. Naruto could only nod his head.

"You need to learn to appreciate the beauty of the moment, because for us, that moment will come and go like the breeze does for most people. Hang on to these moments, remember them so that you will have them in the years to come. It's the small things that make life worth living, even for an Immortal," he told him. "Heh, I guess that's two lessons in immortality."

Naruto frowned and glanced back at his teacher, then asked, "What's the other?"

"This," Colin said with a smile and then shoved, or more like threw Naruto off the cliff into the open air.

"WHAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHT!?!" he screamed as he fell, tumbling through the air.

At the last possible second, he managed to twist himself around so he was facing the ground, watching its fast approach and then... WHAM! Impact! Pain! And then blackness, the familiar darkness of unconsciousness.

Time unknown after, he felt the pain return, but less overwhelming and more like a bunch of little aches all over his body. He felt a sharp crack in his ribs, heard it to, and then his breathing became easier. After about three minutes of this, and another bunch of cracks, the aches and pains were mostly gone and he was getting uncomfortable just lying there on the ground, so he slowly opened his eyes to see... dirt.

Surprised, he blinked and lifted his head.

Looking again, and then slowly taking in the rest of his surroundings, he saw that he was in the center of a small crater, maybe only as wide as he was tall. He was also lying in a depression of his own body.

Groaning with the strain and the pain of his few remaining aches, Naruto got to his knees and took a better look at where he was. He knew this place, although the crater was new, but the rock wall and group of trees off to his right were still familiar. Looking up, he saw the Hokage Monument from an up close, base-of-the-mountain point of view. More specifically, directly beneath the cliff he'd just been thrown off of!

Growling now, Naruto got to his feet and grabbed his head as an afterthought as the now-familiar buzz went through his system. Turning, he shot a glare at Colin as the older man stepped through the trees.

"Wow, I expected you to still be out for the count," Colin admitted as soon as he stood before the blond.

"What do you mean, out for the count?" Naruto snapped at him. "You just tried to kill me! You nearly did! What kind of lessons are you trying to teach me here?"

"Not tried, and not nearly," Colin grinned, crossing his arms and leaning back against a nearby tree.

"Huh?" he was confused.

"I did kill you and you were dead," Colin pointed at the crater. Naruto turned to look, and had to admit, given that it was half a foot deep into the soil, there was no way he should have survived!

"I know you've recovered from near-fatal wounds already, even before you became Immortal," he told the ninja. "Wounds that would have killed practically anyone else, attacks that were supposed to be one-hit kills, and even assassination jutsu, you've just stood up and walked away from. Maybe spent a week in the hospital for, but never much longer than that. From what Jiraiya and Tsunade tell me, most blamed it on that demon fox that's supposed to be sealed inside of you."

Naruto flinched, but otherwise didn't respond.

"Being Immortal, however, changes things, and you need to learn that," Colin continued. "You _cannot_ die. You'll heal from one-hit-kill fatal wounds in _minutes_ where it would have taken you days beforehand. If you die, you'll be the equivalent of unconscious for maybe a day at the most, depending on the trauma to your body. Then you'll just get up and walk off like nothing happened. This is not a trick, or a joke, or a prank Naruto. This is for real. You. Are. Immortal."

Naruto gulped and it finally sunk in. Sure, he'd understood the words and what everyone had been telling him, and he did believe Colin about everything. Still, there's knowing, and then there's _believing_!

Taking a shuddering breath, Naruto just kept staring at the crater that, only a minute or two ago, he'd been lying dead in. He reached out a hand and felt the earth at the center of the crater. It was still warm.

"You said you didn't expect me to revive so soon," he said to his Teacher. "Why?"

Colin shrugged. "Most new Immortals take a while to heal from injury, opposed to the older or more experienced Immortals you'll find out in the world. A cut will take over a minute to heal rather than instantaneous, and death, well, death can take anywhere from a day to a full year, depending on how bad the death was. By the way, trauma to the head is always worse and takes more time to heal."

"How long was I...?" he couldn't finish the question.

"I pushed you off only..." he glanced at his watch, "Hunh. Seven minutes ago. It took me three minutes to get down the cliff, and we've been talking for almost four now. So I'd guess you were only dead for a minute, two at the most before reviving."

Naruto knew better, though he said nothing. He hadn't been dead for even half a minute. He was different. Even for Immortals, which were as different as they'd ever come, he was something... more.

Naruto's eyes went wide as he realized what made him different. The Fox! The damned demon fox Kyuubi no Kitsune! Except... where was it? Every time Naruto had been about to die or was on death's doorstep, the Kyuubi had spoken to him and shared its chakra with him, to keep him, and it from dying.

Wait a minute...

"Colin," Naruto spoke, his voice strained with emotion. "There's no way to become Immortal except by dying, right? I died fighting Sasuke, that's how I became Immortal? Right?"

"Right," he replied.

"So... say that there was someone, something else living inside me, depending on me to stay alive so that it could stay alive," the blond said, "What would have happened to it when I became Immortal?"

Colin looked down and stared at his young student. The silence remained tense for several long moments between them, until finally, the older Immortal looked off to his left. He seemed to be listening to someone else, and Naruto could have sworn he heard a whisper on the wind, but he couldn't understand it. At last, Colin answered his question.

"It would have died with your body. But it would not have been revived by your Quickening. In fact, it would have been destroyed by your power, as what you describe sounds much like a parasite, and the Quickening destroys all parasites in the body, no matter what."

"Oh," was all Naruto could say to that. Looks like he'd finally finished what the Fourth had started all those years ago. At least he didn't ever have to worry about the Fox getting out anymore, or it's annoying habit of getting him angry and shoving its chakra at him.

"I think we're done for the day," Colin told him. "Meet at the training grounds bright and early tomorrow. And be sure to rest up for it. You're going to need it."

Naruto grinned and nodded. Colin walked off alone.

He got to his feet and considered his options. He wasn't a brooder, like the Emo-Uchiha. He'd also known that he was Immortal for weeks now, and had been training to handle the new challenges he would be facing because of it. He also had the rest of the day off and he'd been meaning to catch up with his friends sooner rather than later.

Smiling to himself, Naruto felt a burden he hadn't even been aware of finally fall away into nothing. He raced off, planning on having some of his favorite bowls of ramen at Ichiraku's before tracking down and catching up with all his friends.

_Rooftop of Hokage Tower_

_One Month Later_

_Dawn_

Naruto stood eagerly across from his Teacher. He currently held his katana in his right hand, while Colin waited patiently with his own blade unsheathed. They both had already taken off their coats and stood apart from each other in shirt and pants, Naruto had even taken off his orange vest-jacket while Colin stood in his tank top and cargo pants.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Colin asked him dryly. Naruto had gotten used to the older Immortal's way of speaking after a month and a half of learning from him.

"Tsunade-baasan says that I'm not allowed to accept any more missions outside of Konoha until you clear me for surviving on my own in case I run into any... unfriendly Immortals, she said. She's let me take some D-Rank and in-village C-Rank missions so I don't find out if I can starve to death, but I can't stand being cooped up like this. If I win this fight, you'll tell Obaasan that I'm trained enough to leave the village?"

Colin nodded.

"_If_ you win this, one way or another, then I will tell Tsunade and anyone else you want me to that your training is finished. But that's a very big if, you understand Naruto?" he remarked. Naruto just nodded, and then saluted with his katana, taking it in both hands and bowing with a nod of the head. Colin returned the salute and they both readied themselves.

They stood across from one another for over a minute, just holding their blades at the ready, their footing sure and steady. Finally, Naruto's impatience was the deciding factor and the sweat in his eyes from the sun was driving him crazy, so rather than blink he charged. Colin charged at the same moment as though expecting it. They both moved faster than normal vision could track, swords cutting the air with a soft whistle of wind.

Sparks flew the moment the katana blades came into contact.

Colin had taught Naruto how to channel his quickening into the sword a little over a week ago, and the young Immortal had discovered that not only did the lightning-like energy increase the durability and sharpness of his blade, but if he channeled his chakra into it as well it was like wielding a natural extension of himself, much like an animal swiping with its claws or fangs. It also made his swords almost unbreakable so long as he was holding onto them and channeling energy into them.

It also made for really cool special effects when their swords crossed!

"Heh, not bad kid, not bad at all," Colin grunted as he held back Naruto's surprising strength.

"Thanks, but," Naruto paused to exhale and adjust his footing a bit, "I don't think either one of us is trying really hard at this point. You went way harder on me in your last training bout yesterday than this!"

"What makes you think that it was our last training bout, huh?" Colin flashed a grin.

"Because," Naruto took a breath and closed his eyes only for a moment, "I'm going to win this little match so I can start being a _ninja_ again!" His eyes snapped open with a feral intensity that made Colin want to reconsider this whole fight. "I'm going to win!"

The young Immortal surged forward with surprising power, forcing Colin back a few steps and then had to dodge as the blond swung his katana with devastating force that cut the air and would have severed limbs if the older Immortal had been even a hairsbreadth slower.

He didn't stop with that and Colin knew he wouldn't, but the blue-eyed blond was striking quickly with no pause, slashing left, right, forward, above, below, anywhere and everywhere practically all at once and it was all Colin could do to dodge and avoid getting cut while looking for an opening to counterattack.

There wasn't one.

Seeing that his pupil wasn't slowing down any time soon, and knowing first hand the ungodly amount of stamina the young Immortal already possessed, Colin changed his strategy a bit and started blocking every other strike and dodging the rest of the time. With each block, he put more and more strength behind his own sword, and he always made sure Naruto felt it every time he blocked.

Naruto grimaced upon receiving the tenth such blow, feeling his hands start to go a bit numb from the force sent through them. Being an ageless Immortal with powers of instant regeneration doesn't mean a thing if his body is still human. Nerves and muscles are attacked the same way, the only difference is that with Immortals, any damage done isn't permanent, but it's still done. Naruto ignored the pain and took a half step back to readjust his grip. He'd learned the hard way to never do that in the middle of attacking or defending.

That half step, however, was exactly what Colin had been waiting for.

Naruto suddenly found himself on the defensive as his Teacher brutally counterattacked with a savage flurry of blows that almost drove him to the ground. It definitely had him retreating in any case, and he couldn't get the room needed to start making attacks of his own again. Blocking and ducking at every swing, Naruto allowed a moment of panic to overcome him and he started sweating and loosened the grip on his sword, backing away even further.

Colin saw this and briefly entertained the idea of taunting his student, but he knew that would just get the kid motivated all over again, and the point of this exercise was to see if he was ready for the real thing when it came. His next attack was aimed at disarming his student and catching him before he knew what happened.

The blades came together once more, Naruto blocking halfheartedly due to his panic, and then Colin went in for the kill, twisting his sword just so, sliding the blades each others sides and forcing the blond's wrist into an angle that forced it to release what the hand gripped. The katana popped free from his student's hand.

What Colin did not expect however, was for the Naruto he was fighting to pop into a cloud of smoke, along with the katana! He spun around in and instant, but it was already too late. The real Naruto stood just behind him, katana in hand and raised so the edge was against the skin of Macleod's neck.

"I know it's not exactly honorable," Naruto said, reaching with his other hand to disarm the older Immortal, who understandably tensed at being so vulnerable all of a sudden, "Using ninjutsu and _Kage Bunshin_ like that. But it's not in the Rules, now is it?"

"No, no it's not," Colin was forced to concede. He often wondered what would happen to the Game if ever there was an Immortal with the ninja skills of the Hidden Countries and decided to go head hunting. Immortals could not use ninjutsu or genjutsu at all, because one had to be able to use chakra, and unless the chakra network was already set up before the Quickening became active, it was nearly next to impossible to change that. Colin knew someone that said he knew of another Immortal that had done it, but they'd never met.

"How did you do it anyway? Make me think I was fighting you when I was really fighting a clone the whole time?" Macleod wanted to know, still with his student's sword against his neck.

Naruto shrugged, "I didn't. I fought you with everything I had. Then I got distracted and you started whaling on me. I did what I always do when pressed," he grinned and removed the blade from his teacher's weak spot. "I came up with the most unpredictable thing I could imagine doing, and then I did it! First time I ever managed to pull it off too! _Kage Bunshin no jutsu_ without seals!" He started laughing.

Colin flinched and nearly ran for it right there. If this man were _anyone_ else, the Game would be over today. Whatever chances the rest of them, even the oldest Immortals still out there, none of them could stand against this kid in an adult's body. Not for long anyway.

He started laughing along with his student, taking his sword back and enjoying his friend's victory for what it was worth. "Congratulations, Uzumaki Naruto, you are now the world's first Official Immortal Ninja!"

"YATTA!" Naruto screamed to the heavens, jumping for joy. Colin smiled and felt like joining him.

He didn't though.

To Be Continued...


	40. Missing Hokage: Yan

Title:The Missing Hokage : Yan

Author:Joshua

Disclaimer:Naruto is published by Shounen Jump Magazine, and the creator doesn't know what to do with his own creation so instead of hiring Ghost Writers to make it more interesting, he "focuses" on other characters that nobody cares about. This story is in response to Perfect Lionheart's "Missing Hokage" challenge.

Summary:Conclusion. Jiraiya and Kakashi leave what remains of Konoha with the last loyal remnants and join up with Naruto and Team Hokage at their new Village Hidden In Time; Jikoku.

Yan: Exodus

Things were heating up in Konoha these days. It was the _way_ things were heating up that threw in confusion on whether that was a bad thing or not. For one thing, there was not a man nor woman that wasn't getting laid daily, sometimes twice or more. There were also a record number of pregnancies since before the year of the Kyuubi attack. Yet at the same time, politically, it was not a good time to be in charge.

The rate of successful missions to failures remained the same, the number of active kunoichi had dropped by more than half, and the civilian confidence in the office of the Hokage was at a record low in polls. Nevertheless, from an objective standpoint, Konoha was thriving and well on its way to repairing years of neglected damage done to it's forces. But to live there one might think they were in the dark ages.

Jiraiya looked down over the village he called his home and birthplace. He'd lived here for exactly half his life, the other half traveling all over the Elemental Nations. He loved the place and its people, always had and always would. But some days... he really wanted to torch the whole of it.

It was getting to the point that it wasn't worth all the trouble to keep things running at all.

He stood atop the Hokage monument, briefly glancing at the faces carved there, seeing Tsunade's (which had been half finished until he'd been able to raise the funds to finish it while adding his own face) between his own and his greatest student's. One of them had given up his greatest legacy for the village and the people there, while the other gave up her entire life and name to protect that legacy. A legacy that _should_ have been his successor, in more ways than one, but primarily as leader and hero of the village.

Instead, he was outcast, shunned for all time from Konoha's borders and never to be allowed to return. He'd just come from the meeting where that declaration, silent and never spoken aloud yet just as true, was ultimately revealed to him. He had been trying, with a number of the Clan Heads and other key members of the Council to get the banishment placed on Uzumaki Naruto revoked and reinstate him into the ranks of the ninja of Konoha. It was a last ditch, all or nothing effort on all their parts.

It was rejected by more than three quarters of the Council, which was very odd because Jiraiya had believed that _he_ had three quarters of the Council in his pocket before even going in. He underestimated just how much Danzo really controlled in that room, and how much people hated the Kyuubi.

He found that in particular very odd, because the only logical reasoning for hating the Kyuubi was because of the attack where it devastated their ranks and cost them all the Fourth Hokage. And yet after having revealed that Naruto was the Fourth Hokage's _SON_ and was the one responsible for keeping the Kyuubi imprisoned, a vast majority of people still responded with unreasonable hatred whenever the Kyuubi was even mentioned!

He suspected that there might be some kind of smear campaign against Naruto, but he could find no evidence of it.

Jiraiya sighed to himself and rubbed his tired eyes.

Yes, it was long since past time.

"Jiraiya-sama?" Kakashi appeared in a flash of leaves.

"Where is she?" was the first thing out of the white-haired sage's mouth.

"..." Kakashi did not answer.

"He's finally disposed of her?"

"... Not exactly," the one-eyed masked jounin finally said. "After you refused to allow her to work the... A-Rank escort class missions, as you know Sakura-san disappeared for a time. All traces hinted that she'd gone on vacation with her family and her family even hinted that she was visiting friends outside the village. I finally tracked her down to... Tanzaku. In the red light district."

Jiraiya shut his eyes, working to contain the rage and overwhelming remorse he suddenly felt.

"She... was working in the... back room at... the Black Studio; Studio 69," Kakashi finished his report.

Jiraiya lost all trace of remorse and his eyes snapped open with a rage and KI that rivaled the Kyuubi at it's full fury. "And?" he asked.

"I... tried to extract her. She did not know me." Kakashi finally told him.

"Has Danzo moved against anyone else that has ties to Naruto?" Jiraiya wanted to know.

"..." Kakashi hesitated, then replied, "Yes. I also managed to snuff no less than thirteen trackers and tails that were following the Ichiraku clan when they left the other day. I heard about what happened with the Council. Did Danzo do anything that might hint at...?" the silver-haired jounin trailed off.

"At the suspicion that I've been keeping in contact with an outcast, a fellow Sannin the walked out of this village with said outcast and the heirs to the two greatest doujutsu bloodlines this village has ever had to create their own private ninja team? That I know their exact location and means of reaching them?" Jiraiya finished for him. "Not in so many words, but I got that impression, yeah."

"... What are you going to do?" Kakashi finally asked.

"The plan has been in place since before I took office, the only thing that's changed has been the location of where we go after we leave," the Toad Sage answered. "And it just so happens that where we're going is that new Hidden Village that's popped up."

Kakashi's eye went wide with surprise. "Jikokugakure? It's for real? I thought it was a joke someone was playing and it kept spreading like a rumor."

"It's no joke," Jiraiya told him. "And you'll never guess whose been named Makage."

"There are only five Kages, and then pretenders to the name," the lone Sharingan of Konoha snapped. "Like Orochimaru calling himself Otokage. There are only five Shadows of the Ninja World."

"Unless a majority of those five declare there to be another and recognize his or her village as being strong enough to _have_ a kage. Me, the Fifth Kazekage and the Raikage officially recognized Jikokugakure as an independent village that is strong, and met with the leader of that village. He demonstrated his own and his village's power, and I declared him a Kage on the spot. Gaara agreed with me and the other Kages that were present were a bit reluctant, but they agreed that he was strong enough to be considered one of us. One of the strongest ninja in the world."

"Let me guess," Kakashi chuckled. Jiraiya nodded and told him anyway, "Uzumaki Naruto is the Makage of Jikokugakure, the Village Hidden in Time."

"So, everyone is being evacuated to Naruto's new village?"

Jiraiya nodded, then shrugged.

"All those that agree with me that nothing can be done to save the Leaf from the rot that has taken hold within the Roots, and a number of the civilians that have nowhere else to go and have been under the Hokage's protection for some time, and of course all of the clans. Danzo's pissed off the last of them with his latest stunt. I got the report about five minutes before you showed up. He threatened them. Everyone except the Hyuugas and Inuzuka. The Ino-Shika-Cho clans and Aburames sided with me anyway and there will probably be consequences in the near future. For them and anyone else that ignored Danzo's threats."

"If there's proof...!" Kakashi said hopefully.

Jiraiya shook his head. "There's not. And technically speaking they weren't outright threats, only implied and extremely subtle. Nevertheless, the clans are now all on our side."

"Except that it won't do us any good in getting Naruto back," the boy's former sensei sighed, forlorn.

"Haven't you been paying attention, Kakashi?" Jiraiya commented in a dull tone. "Naruto can never come back. Which is why _we're_ leaving to join him. At the very least he knows how to keep a promise. Something that Danzo, Koharu, and Homura seem to have trouble doing from time to time."

"When do we leave?"

"Ah, see, that's the thing Kakashi," Jiraiya turned to face the student of his student. "Danzo is on guard now, particularly after this last little victory of his. He'll be expecting me to counterattack in someway, and after a fashion that's what I'm doing, but I'm also stepping out of the game at the same time. I can't exactly run away and be Hokage at the same time, after all."

"Which is why I cannot allow Danzo to step in as Hokage, which he will be if I do not head him off at the pass and name a successor before resigning. Otherwise all the work that we've put in these past three years will have been for nothing. He'll have the exact same twenty-four hours to change and make or remove any law he sees fit, and undoubtedly he's had the paperwork ready for his kind of laws for decades by now."

"Hokage-sama... what is it you are asking me to do?" Kakashi questioned.

"I'm asking you to be the Seventh Hokage after me," Jiraiya finally said it.

"..." Kakashi said nothing.

"It doesn't matter if you say anything or not, or even if you say you agree or am honored or whatever. Just so long as it says that you're my successor on paper. Which it does by the way."

"..." the silver-haired scarecrow was silent, just staring up at the author of his favorite book series and teacher of his sensei. But he really, really, really wanted to kill him at that moment.

"Only thing I ask, when you finally do quit, which I'm sure you will sooner or later, is that you write out full pardons for everyone that leaves Konoha to join Jikoku. Other than that... do what you want to," Jiraiya laughed.

Kakashi nodded and bowed. When he straightened, he asked, "When are you leaving?"

"Tonight," Jiraiya answered with a wide smile, and then he vanished in a puff of smoke.

"I am so screwed," Kakashi mumbled to himself.

_Konoha_

_Night_

Jiraiya stood just a mile outside the southern gates of Konoha. For all appearances he looked alone on the hill, and for the moment he was. He hoped that would change very soon. Looking casually around at his surroundings, he kept glancing back towards Konoha, his home for so many years, and now such a great disappointment.

Still, his final "plans" would be in full effect come morning. But before then, he and all those that would be going to the new Hidden Village Jikoku had to make a clean getaway. As in the type of getaway that has everybody thinking they just disappeared from their beds or other ghost-story kinds of things.

After only a few minutes wait though, Jiraiya caught sight of a group of people making their way past him in the underbrush. He made a sign with his hands and after that they stopped trying to sneak past and joined him on the hill. It was the remainder of the genin from Naruto's graduating class at the Ninja Academy. Plus Team Gai, although they no longer were Team Gai at this point. The Jounin Sensei for all the teams were nowhere in sight at the moment.

"Is this everybody?" the Toad Sage asked once he counted out all save Team 7.

"A few more," Shikamaru answered. "They had to pick up some troublesome things here and there."

"Do I even want to know?" he sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Ichiraku Teuchi and Ichiraku Ayame," Ino began the list.

"The Konohamaru Corps and their immediate families," Choji added.

"And roughly five full clans of B-Class or below importance," Shikamaru finished. "The ones that don't have members on the Council, or anyone in ANBU or of Jounin Rank. In fact, the vast majority never make it past chuunin before retiring and working guard duty."

"Oh yeah, and Kurenai-sensei's former student, the last member of the Head Family of the Kurama Clan," Kiba picked up where they left off.

"And everyone currently on the disability list at the hospital," Shino completed the list.

"Totaling in...?" Jiraiya asked with a sinking feeling in his gut.

"Over three hundred willing and able bodies, Jiraiya-sama," a ninja answered from the darkness as exactly that many people, taking nothing but what they could carry, stepped out of the shadows and into view of the clearing. "If any of us ever had any doubts or ill will towards Uzumaki Naruto, that is long since buried now. If even half the rumors are true... all of us would rather put our destinies in the hand of a boy that defied fate and the circumstances of his life to make a new and more powerful village, than trust what will happen in Konoha after tonight."

The rest of the crowd made (soft) sounds of agreement, and Jiraiya couldn't deny the sense of resolve in these people's eyes. He nodded, said nothing, just turned and started walking. The exodus followed quietly along behind. By morning, the only sign of them would be all the empty beds and abandoned work posts.

_Konoha_

_Next Morning_

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY'RE GONE?!" Danzo's shout could be heard over half the village.

The Root ANBU merely repeated what he'd already told his leader in the exact same quiet tone. Danzo's face turned pensive with blotches of red coloring his dark cheeks. The Root ANBU and the two Council Elders that were in the room with him stared and held back their gulps of nervousness. For a man such as Danzo, so rigidly in control at all times, even when being tortured and attacked by his enemies, to allow himself to be so visibly distraught was evidence enough of just how much this unexpected news upset him.

After all, they'd just been told that ninety percent of the Village's ninja clans had disappeared during the night, like they and almost all their personal belongings and even some properties had been spirited away during the night by the gods themselves. And apparently the Hokage, Jiraiya, was nowhere to be found. The few ninja clans that remained were those that actually lived in small settlements _outside_ the village and for all the Elders knew at this point, they had gone missing too, and word just hadn't reached them yet.

To make matters worse, for the Elders that is, they'd learned that just the day before, the Fire Lord had confirmed and effectively cemented Jiraiya's heir to the position of Hokage. Namely one Hatake Kakashi. No matter what political maneuvering they did now, short of killing him before Jiraiya was discovered missing, there was no way to prevent Kakashi from becoming the Seventh Hokage.

"We need to start making plans regarding this village's future," Danzo stated firmly to his co-conspirators. "Jiraiya's placement and his... laws, have delayed some of our previous plans. No longer. We shall..." he stopped talking when another Root ANBU appeared.

She had shock-pink hair tied in a tight braid and wore skintight red mini-skirt and halter bikini top, in accordance with the Hokage's new uniform dress code of course. She quietly whispered something directly into Danzo's un-bandaged ear, and then vanished in a shunshin before he really had time to react. His cheeks flushed crimson with rage as his fist clenched, bones cracking from the strain.

"It would seem," he shared with his colleagues, "that Jiraiya left a... note, with the Fire Lord. He's resigned as Hokage and put Kakashi in his place as Hokage. Kakashi, or the new Hokage, has seen fit to declare martial law in light of most of Konoha's ninja clans exodus, and decreed that he will not be accepting meetings from anyone until the crisis has passed. The village is in lock down, and a curfew has been put in place. There has also been a recall of all former and current ANBU from the ninja corps. War-time punishments have been reinstated for the duration of the lock down, and can only be rescinded by the Hokage himself."

Koharu and Homura gasped. They shot to their feet and immediately made to return to their homes through the secret underground passages they used to get here.

Forget Jiraiya's silly and humiliating punishments! War-time conditions and recalled ANBU meant that if _anyone_, civilian or ninja, were found in violation of curfew or the lock down, then that was an instant death sentence. Only, _only_ authorized ANBU were allowed outside for any reason, and even then, no one would see them. Stealth would be at an all time high and by evening, Konoha would look like a ghost town to any outsider. They couldn't even risk going out for groceries so long as the lock down lasted.

They could only hope that Kakashi would be on the job for once and have the matter, and the lock down, resolved quickly and promptly without any undue stress.

_Jikoku_

_One Month Later_

"They still in lock down?" Jiraiya asked as Kakashi slowly walked into the Village Hidden In Time, along with the remaining ninja clans and innocent people that were willing to relocate to Naruto's new village, which is to say everyone that wasn't in league with Danzo, the Elder's, or just a bunch of pricks that used to abuse Naruto when he was a kid.

"Hm? You say something, Jiraiya-sama?" Kakashi looked up from the latest Icha Icha book that had been released, _Icha Icha Tactics_.

The white-haired Sannin sighed and rolled his eyes as Naruto, his pregnant (with twins) wife Hinata, best friend Sasuke, and adopted grandmother Tsunade came up to greet the new members of their village.

"Lock down? Konoha? The whole reason why all contact with the Hidden Leaf has been cut off to everyone for the past month?" Jiraiya repeated slowly, like he would to a stupid person, IE a younger Naruto.

"Huh? Oh. I knew there was something I forgot to do," the silver-haired Kage shrugged, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"OK, I just needed to confirm it, that's all," Jiraiya was suddenly all smiles and clapped the tall scare crow on the back and lead him into the temporal anomaly that had become Naruto's new ninja village.

END _Yan_


	41. Hanaukyo Maids: Xander's Maids

**Hanaukyo Maids/BtVS Crossover**

"Xander Maids"

Title: "What can I do for you Master?"

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: BtVS and Xander Harris were conceived by Joss Whedon and given birth by Mutant/Enemy Productions. Hanaukyo Maids, both original and _La Verte_ were written and created by . Some characters from both sources will be present, but I've also taken some liberties and made a few of "my own" maids of the Hanaukyo Maid Team.

Summary: After Graduation, IE after Xander turns 18, a grandfather he never knew about gave him his inheritance, and then retired to a tropical island paradise, leaving Xander to run a multi-national multi-billion dollar company . . . and an island mansion filled with beautiful young maids, every one of them willing and anxious to do _anything_ their new Master desires.

The First Day:

Xander checked the letter one more time as he looked around at his surroundings, then he double-checked the ticket stub he'd gotten from the boat after it had dropped him off at the dock, and the only sign of civilization that he'd seen so far on this seemingly deserted island.

"Who the heck is this _Grandfather Hanaukyo_ anyway?" he asked himself as he trudged on through the thick tropical jungle trees. "Of all things I get on my 18th birthday, a day I had actually looked forward to as a day of independence, freedom, and the right to eat all the Twinkies I could afford! But no, I got a gift certificate for a clothing store from Buffy, an atlas of the world from Wills, which was actually very nice and has been very useful so far, and a cryptic letter from a grandfather I've never even heard of before and who could give Deadboy lessons in being vague and uber-cryptic! Oh, and can't forget, a black eye from Pops and a long talk with Mom about how she had an affair out of college and Pops really isn't my biological father and a threat from both of them together that I had to start paying rent before summer started. Yep. Definitely a birthday to remember."

After his rant, Xander actually felt a little better, if out of breath, but continued on through the foliage in a, if not happier, then definitely a more at ease frame of mind.

Actually, the letter from, apparently his biological grandfather on his biological father's side, was a bit more than what he was making it out to be. Otherwise he wouldn't be on some god forsaken tropical island on the other side of the world from his home, obviously. It read;

_Dear Grandson_

_You wouldn't believe how long it took me to find you! And it pains me greatly to tell you that your father passed away shortly after meeting your mother. But thankfully not before telling ME about you and dear Jessica._

(Xander had to stop here several times as his mother's name was actually Andrea, but it went on)

_Unfortunately, after your father passed away, and due to the circumstances surrounding his sudden death, your mother no longer felt safe and she guarded your safety above all else. She gave you up to the two low-bred vermin that have raised you, and I use the term with the utmost disdain!_

(Xander already liked this guy after reading this, as he'd long ago lost any interest in maintaining any ties to the Harrises)

_Your mother kept your location and who she'd given you to a secret, telling no one, not even me when I confronted her about wanting to raise and protect my own grandson! It wasn't until she was on her deathbed, a rare disease and I believe a broken heart, that she finally confided in me where you were. Of course, I immediately set about guaranteeing you're safety and finding out everything I could about you._

_Just my luck that you've already graduated High School. But now that you're 18, I believe it is long past due that you got away from those rat snakes called the Harris's and brought you home to your real family. I think you are ready for your inheritance, now that you've come of age, and I am certain that you are mature enough for the responsibility._

_Included are travel arrangements, if you so choose to use them, that will get you to our ancestral family home._

_I know you'll love it!_

_Sincerely,_

_Grandfather Hanaukyo_

Xander honestly didn't know what to make of the letter, but the travel arrangements were legit, cross-continental and everything, even going across an ocean or two! And given his alternative of blowing his life savings on driving Uncle Rory's beat up old Chevy as far as it was willing to go, or taking advantage of free and non-payment-pending travel arrangements to some lush tropical island on the other side of the world from the Hellmouth, with the bonus of finding out he was adopted and that he had family that loved him and wanted to meet him, he'd rather investigate this man claiming to be his grandfather and find out as much as he could about his biological parents.

Which is what wound him up here, in the jungle, sweating himself into dehydration, and beginning to wonder if the ancient ancestral family home mentioned in the letter wasn't some Robinson Caruso Tree hut or tiny little shack in the middle of nowhere on this deserted island. He'd been walking for hours by now, and he was starting to give up hope.

He gave a big sigh of relief when he finally noticed that there was a clearing of some kind ahead past the trees. Finally he was getting out of all of the trees and vines and branches and bushes! Heck, maybe he had finally stumbled across the tiny . . .

. . . little . . .

. . . family . . .

. . . shack . . .???

He now stood at the end of a white stone pavement, big enough to land a couple of Concords side-by-side on it, beautiful and colorful gardens at regular intervals along the pavement leading up to a double row of palm trees that frames the biggest fountain he had ever seen, including pictures of the Rockefeller plaza in New York City! And just past and beyond the mountain fountain, was the biggest, no the hugest, the most gargantuan mansion he could have ever imagined! Come to think of it, it was actually about a couple miles and a few stories bigger than the biggest he could imagine!

As it was, Xander suddenly felt very tiny and very, very confused and concerned.

_This_ was his family home?!

Insert 'Hanaukyo Maid Team' Theme

Xander was walking with a stunned sort of air around him, looking around at what could be considered the front lawn of the mansion, though it was big enough to put all of Sunnydale on it with the city limits not even touching the surrounding jungle/forest. Or at least it certainly seemed that way. Needless to say the young man was very confused.

He just didn't understand! There wasn't anything in the letter from his grandfather that indicated that his 'inheritance' was anything like . . . like _this_!!

Maybe his grandfather was actually like the Chief Butler for whoever lived here, like Alfred in the Batman movies. Yeah, that had to be it, because the thought that Xander actually owned all of _this_ now . . . it was just too much!

When Xander had finally gotten about halfway to the . . . the _house_, it was staggering to think of such a humongous building as just a "house", he noticed some movement coming from the front steps. It wasn't until it became obvious that the movement was rapidly coming towards him that he began to get worried. He stopped walking and tried to figure out what it was that he could be seeing, and whether he should be worried or not.

When they were less than twenty meters from him, he could finally recognize the movement for what it was; _hundreds_ of young women, all in colorful maid uniforms, running straight towards him with arms outstretched and huge beaming smiles on their faces crying out, "Master!"

In the microseconds it took Xander's mind and instincts to process this information and realize what was going on, it was already too late.

"Ack!" was all he had time to cry out before being buried beneath a swiftly growing mound of young female bodies. Unable to move, he was completely helpless as the women surrounding him kissed him all over his face, at least three that he was aware of going in for full tongue-on-tongue French kisses, rubbed their breasts and butts all over his body, and he was pretty sure that the same three that French kissed him also forcefully grabbed his hands and brought them to what he was fairly certain, considering the one time he'd had sex before, were very naughty and/or private places on a woman's body. Not to mention where all the hands were going on _his_ body!

In hindsight, he actually realized what a golden opportunity this was, but at the time, survival mattered a little more to him than the realization of a pubescent teenage fantasy.

Not sure how he'd done it, but somehow he'd managed to climb to the top of the mound of maids, and just before the next wave crushed him back down to the bottom, he cried out in a strangled voice, "HELP!!" Then at least another hundred maids tackled him back into the dog pile forcing him to crawl out another way.

Finally, by being very quiet, very sneaky, and very very quick, he dragged himself out of the pile on the side, hugging the ground like Soldier-boy would move through the obstacle course in Basic Training. Until he came to a pair of sharp blue high heels, which were on a pair of dainty feet that were attached to a pair of smooth, strong, long legs in beige hosiery that were obviously connected to a young woman. A young woman in a royal blue maid uniform. He gulped, looking up into her face.

She smiled, the sun right behind her head, making it difficult to see her face at first, and then she knelt down to help Xander to his feet. As she did this, she asked in a light, feminine, and yet very mature and nurturing voice, "We have been waiting for you. You are Alexander Harris?" he nodded as he started to get to his feet, helped by the young woman. She smiled brightly, bowed and then said the most shocking thing he'd ever heard before, "How may I serve you Master?"

Xander's brain short-circuited for the third time that hour in what was no doubt going to be a very long day. In part because of the very surprising and never before directed at him question, and the other part, directing 95% of his blood away from his brain, was because he was looking at the second female that in his entire life he'd fallen in love with at first sight.

"Can I have you?" he muttered without thinking.

She smiled that wonderful smile again, like he'd said something wonderfully eloquent and complimenting that made her the happiest woman on Earth. Then her smile actually brightened as she brought him to his feet and answered, "Of course Master."

The remaining 5% vacated his brain but didn't really go anywhere as he felt like he should be having a heart attack about this time.

Finally he shook himself out of it and quickly realized that he'd been very rude, and in less time than even he expected, had made a complete fool of himself. "Uh, sorry, totally my bad. I, uh, I didn't mean, what I said. I mean I didn't mean it like it sounded, and I uh, that is to say . . . uhh. I'm Xander. Harris. I am Xander Harris," he finally just introduced himself, extending his hand in greeting.

The maid smiled at him again and gently took his hand with her own dainty grip, and Xander could quickly feel his entire face turning a bright red. Everything about this young woman was pure beauty and grace. She was only a couple inches below his own height, petite with light porcelain skin, and while her outfit wasn't the Hustler® fetish version of a maid's uniform, it hinted at some very womanly curves and a very beautiful body beneath it. She had waist length platinum hair, bright blue eyes that always shone with happiness and joy it seemed, and her face was just so . . . CUTE! There was no other word for it really. And given the fact that she was still smiling at him, Xander was beginning to feel a little better about his chances.

Then he remembered exactly what she'd said to him.

The blood rushed back so fast he was afraid his nose had started bleeding, but whether he did or not was nothing compared to the sudden and very intense headache he had.

"W-w-w-wha . . . w-w-w-w-w-w-w-way . . . Now just wait a damn minute here!" he shouted after stuttering.

Instantly all the commotion that had been behind him ceased. Slowly, he turned around, and was rather shocked to see all of the maids that had been in the dog pile after tackling him, now standing at attention in ranks that would make every General on the planet jealous. He casually noticed that each row of maids were grouped together according to the color of their uniform, blue with blues, green with greens, blacks with blacks, so on and so forth.

Deciding to worry about that later, seeing as he had a lot on his mind, he turned back to the beautiful maid before him, and then jumped when he saw even _more_ ranks of the matching color-coded maids standing just behind her, leading all the way up to the mansion. Brain on overload, Xander just made a lot of meaningless stuttering sounds for a couple of minutes before the maid finally took pity on him.

"My name is Mirielle, Master," she introduced herself. "We have been anxiously awaiting your arrival here. Ever since the last Master left, telling us all about you, we've been hoping to meet you and serve you Master. I apologize for the others' excitement in greeting you. They've been wanting to meet you for a very long time now."

"Uh . . . ah . . . whu . . . wha . . . buh . . . huh . . . wha . . . bah . . ." Xander's eyes began to glaze over a little, trying to wrap his mind around what the maid, Mirielle was telling him.

She just smiled at him again, pure happiness radiating from her expression, and continued, "We are the Hanaukyo Maid Team. We're your maids. I hope you are pleased Master."

Xander really wished he could faint right about this time.

Right then, every one of the maids shouted out together, "WELCOME HOME MASTER!"

Xander was nearly knocked off of his feet at the sheer volume of the hundreds, if not more than one thousand maids shouting together at the same time. And he thought the basketball games back home got loud!

"Uh . . . hi?" he finally managed to voice a coherent word.

TBC...?


	42. Quantum Possibilities: Home

Title: QUANTUM: Possibilities

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Buffy and all related characters belong to and were created by Joss Whedon. The concept of multiple realities however is public knowledge and scientific theory at BEST. In fact, not even theory as no evidence YET exists to prove or disprove. Any other characters, while based on other fictions or real people, are not copied from said other fictions or the actual real people. They are fictional representations of my own imagination and I stand to make no profit of my own from this fic and if any, people who own or are represented in this fiction should be honored, not offended. If you are, I'll change it, just contact me with either critique or criticism at .. Also, so many people have rewritten this opening scene for so many fanfics, I DON'T CARE IF ITS BEEN USED BEFORE, I WROTE/DESRCIBED IT THIS WAY, BUT JOSS WHEDON OR WHOEVER ACTUALLY WROTE THE SCENE!

Spoilers for "The Gift". And lots of others, I'm not naming them all. Seasons 1-6. And maybe a few books.

Also to note, this in itself is an alternate universe, as if it were the TV verse, then I'd be getting sued for copyright infringement. Timeline: Right after Buffy jumped into the portal the Key opened. Rather than fall through it and to her death however, Buffy fell into the portal as though it were an actual portal. But it still closed. Before this point, yes, identical to the TV verse.

Summary: Buffy, after sacrificing herself to save all, finds out about all the different possibilities her life could have had, if she had only made a few different choices, or if others had.

'_Italics'_ are thoughts.

"Quotes" are speech.

Less and Greater signs are telepathy.

[Brackets] are locations, aka universes.

* * *

[Home]

Sunnydale, CA

The energy vortex swirled and flashed in the early morning night. It was the most amazing, yet devastating sight that the Slayer and her friends had ever seen, and they had seen a lot.

Buffy and her little sister Dawn stood atop the platform that Glory had built for this event, for her trip home. Now, Buffy had beaten Glory and was somehow sure that she would not be coming back, despite knowing that the insane hell god would obviously want revenge for her ruined chance. Despite all this, Buffy was only thinking of one thing at the moment, and that was her sister.

"What are you doing?!" Buffy yelled as she grabbed her sister, just as the fifteen year old was about to run past her and jump into the swirling vortex of destructive hell energies barely twenty feet below them.

"I have to jump… the energy." Dawn whimpered as Buffy held onto her, keeping her from stopping what she started.

"It'll kill you!" Buffy exclaimed, terrified at what Dawn was about to do.

"I know," Dawn whispered as she looked at her sister, her only family left in the world. "Buffy, I know about the ritual. I have to stop it!"

"No!" Buffy's voice shook as she held onto her only reason left for living, her sister. Her promise to her mother.

"I have to! Look at what's happening!" Dawn shouted as at that exact moment, a surge of energy from the churning vortex below shot into the sky beside them, and a flying dragon like demon appeared and flew around the tower, only to disappear out of sight mere moments later.

"Buffy, you have to let me go! The blood starts it, and until the blood stops flowing, it'll never stop!" Dawn pleaded with her sister. Buffy could only shake her head.

"You know you have to let me. It has to have the blood." Dawn explained, looking past her sister at the swirling vortex that her blood, that she had caused. She has caused so much pain and suffering for so many people… she, she can't let it go on like this.

Buffy reflected on those words, and all the hidden meanings that it had meant to her over the past few days. The time she spoke to Dawn in the hospital, the conversation with Spike, the whole conversation with the group back at the magic shop, and finally on the message that her spirit guide had given her; "Death is your gift." "Death…" "Is your gift."

And Buffy was visibly shaken by the realization that dawned on her. A light of understanding came to her face as she turned slowly, her internal Slayer clock instinctively telling her what time it was. And as she turned, a strong orange hue took to the sky, and slowly, slowly but surely, an orb of orange red fire was forming on the horizon and slowly growing larger as it inched higher upon the sky. It was dawn.

Buffy turned back to her sister, a strange serenity within her features all of a sudden. As soon as Dawn looked in her sister's eyes, she knew exactly what Buffy was planning on doing.

"Buffy, no…" she pleaded.

"Dawnie, I have to." Buffy stated.

"NO!" Dawn begged.

"Listen to me, there isn't a lot of time. Listen." Buffy began.

"Dawn listen to me, listen." Buffy urged her sister to hear her last words. "I love you, I will always love you. This is the work that I have to do."

"Tell Giles that… tell Giles that I figured it out, that… I'm OK. Give my love to my friends. You have to take care of them now. You have to take care of each other. You have to be strong. Dawn the hardest thing in this world is to live in it. Be brave. Live. For me."

Dawn was crying as her sister gave her, her final message, her last words. She would know them by heart until the day she died. Taking Dawn's face in her hands one final time, Buffy kissed her sister lovingly on the cheek, and said goodbye one last time, with her eyes.

Then she turned and ran to the end of the platform, leaving a crying Dawn behind her, as she ran towards the birthing one. And then, she disappeared over the edge, heading straight for the heart of that evil energy that Dawn had unleashed unwillingly. It was far too late, but Dawn cried out anyway.

"BUFFY!!!" and then she wept as she fell to her knees, seeing and feeling the rip in reality disappearing, and everything was normal again. Except that Dawn was all alone now. She had no one. Not her sister, not her mother, but… but.

Dawn steadied herself as the light of the new dawn reached her face. She stood up slowly and began to walk down the stairs of the tower. She would be brave. She would live. For Buffy.

She knew what she had to do. And later, when asked, she knew that she would say, and do, that she would do it again in a heartbeat. After giving Dawn her message to her friends and Giles, she kissed her little sister on the cheek, letting the little Summers woman know how much she truly loved her.

Buffy turned after that, and despite knowing full well what she was doing, what it would mean, and that she was more than likely about to die, she felt so very, very calm. Yet as the energy storm raged beneath them, she also felt an anxiousness, a feeling that if she didn't do this, and do this soon, that it would be too late, even for her sacrifice. So filled with sudden adrenaline, working with Slayer muscles, she ran as fast as she could, and as she reached the edge, she jumped, spreading her arms out, her legs straight. She almost felt like she was trying to fly, but she knew on every level of her subconscious that she was falling, and about to die.

But then something else happened. The moment she hit the edge of the energy cloud, she felt the small fragment of Dawn's blood, the Key's energy, interact with the energy that had opened the rip, but at the same time she felt the portal affecting her body in an entirely different way. She realized too late that rather than just falling through it to close the portal, she was going _through it_!

'_I don't want to go to a hell dimension! Again!'_ she screamed in her mind as she closed her eyes, feeling the last of the Key energy leave her body and felt the portal begin to close in around her. But she was no longer a part of the universe she had lived her entire life, she was barely halfway into a completely different universe when it finally sealed shut, cutting her off from the universe that had been her home… forever.

The rest of the Scoobies looked up in shock as they watched the portal open. The lightning flashed out, changing many things about Sunnydale with those single strikes. One of them glanced a piece of the tower, sending a shard of debris straight at Xander's head. Anya tackled him out of the way, the shard hitting her head instead of the man she was going to marry.

"ANYA!" Xander scrambled to his loved one.

Willow huddled close with Tara amidst the same debris, crying as she tried desperately to understand what Buffy would do now. Then she looked up, Tara looking up with her. They both cried out as they watched Buffy run to the end of the tower… and jump.

Giles immediately knew what Buffy was thinking as he watched the same sight, and silently cried to himself, the dead body of the boy named Ben lying still behind him. He knew nothing could save his Slayer. He just wished… that she could move on to the next world… knowing the truth…

Spike was just trying to avoid getting killed.

Giles, Willow, and Tara watched in shock as Buffy plummeted to and into the portal. It flashed angrily at this intrusion for several moments… before finally dispersing like a cloud after the rainstorm was over.

Taking Buffy with it.

They searched for hours, except for Spike and Dawn ofcourse, one who could not be out in the sunlight hours, and the other that needed to get to the hospital as soon as possible. They never found the Slayer's body.

[Home]

_2 weeks later_

"Giles, what could have happened to her?" Willow asked for what must have been the two hundredth time since the final battle with Glory.

Giles sighed, putting down the book he'd been reading and removing his glasses, and setting them on top of the book. He rubbed his eyes, hoping to wipe away the weariness that had been there for the past few days. Ever since he had realized the hopelessness and the despair started to set in.

"I… I can't be for sure Willow, none of us can," Giles answered tiredly.

"She's in another dimension; I've explained that I don't know how many times by now!" Anya exclaimed from behind the cash register.

"But how…?" Willow started to ask.

"We can't find out! All right!" Anya yelled, quite unusual for the former demon. Willow immediately looked wounded and ducked her head in shame for her stupidity. Anya was busy castrating herself as it was.

"I'm sorry Willow," Anya said, putting the cash she had been counting back in the drawer. "Even counting the money isn't helping me calm down." The blonde walked from behind the counter to the middle of the shop. She, Giles, Willow and Tara were the only ones in here besides.

"There are infinite dimensions and alternate universes out there. Buffy… somehow, got sucked into one of them when the portal closed on her. And that's depending if she got there alive, or maybe she even ended up in the hell dimension Glory was wanting to go to. We… there's no way to find out what happened to her Willow. We can't even track her, let alone find her! Maybe, _maybe_ if we knew specifically which universe she ended up we might be able to find her, _maybe_! Sending things to other dimensions is easy work, you and I both know that Willow, but _finding_ specific things in other dimensions and bringing them here? Even people… we can't do it. Hell, I know demons who couldn't do it, and those that I used to know that _could_, wouldn't, and we wouldn't want them to either."

Willow nodded, understanding and accepting what Anya was presenting her with. Tara however, was not yet ready to give up hope. "What about on our side?" she asked suddenly, bringing everyone's attention to her. "I-I m-mean Angel knew the Oracles, and they could control space/time. T-there must be some other creatures fighting f-for our side that has the power to find Buffy and b-bring her home."

Anya snorted and rolled her eyes. Willow looked lovingly at her lover, and then noticed Anya's reaction and called her out for it. "Hey! That's a good idea! Why wouldn't that work?"

"Because there's always a price for getting favors from… "our" side," Anya had to pause as she considered that she was no longer a vengeance demon. "If not outright worship or some sacrifice, and I don't mean the still beating heart of a virgin, I mean stuff like your most valuable possession, or your chance at true love or other emotional stuff like that. Then they ask for some "favor" later on. And those never turn out and are always worth more than whatever you're asking for."

"This is _Buffy_!" Willow stood up and shouted, her eyes going momentarily solid black.

"And what do you think whoever would ask for in return for her return?" Anya challenged right back, not backing down, despite the display of power.

That made Willow stumble a bit as she considered what Anya was saying. "But-but… but she's Buffy," Willow began to leak tears again, her voice falling down to a soft whimper.

Anya had no idea where the impulse came from, but she suddenly hugged Willow tight, trying to fight her own tears from falling. They were soon joined with Tara, but Giles refrained. If he cried tears anymore, it was always in private. The British were good at that sort of thing.

--

Dawn was having a pretty tough time of things. Suddenly an orphan, she and the gang had to quickly devise something to keep her with them, since her dad hadn't even shown up at the funeral, she didn't feel comfortable going after him, begging for a home. So, they came up with the plan of having the Buffybot remain, playing the role of the real Buffy. Hopefully until they could figure out how to bring the real one home again.

Dawn remembered what Buffy had made her promise, and so long as she was the only Summers in the Scooby gang, she would work hard to maintain that promise _and_ Buffy's strength. But… it was harder than she thought, being the central pillar of the gang, and dealing with her own grief at the same time. Coupled with school…

Dawn was slowly beginning to lose her mind, she was sure of it. Maybe she'd bring an AK-47 to school and blow everybody to another dimension, like her sister had been. Maybe she'd turn herself into a vampire and become worse than Angelus had ever been. Maybe she'd study magic and become so corrupted in the black arts that she would become worse than Voldemort. Maybe she'd just deal with everything and keep her promise to Buffy.

"Hey Dawn, how ya doing?" Yasmine asked semi-sympathetically as they walked down the hall.

Dawn looked up, surprised that the dark haired Californian had even spoken to her. She hadn't been crying any today, and as far as she knew she hadn't had any 'upset' displays so far today. Why would Yasmine be asking her if she was ok?

Yasmine immediately interpreted Dawn's confused look. "You know, about how your sister… you know? Last weekend?"

Dawn had been worried for a moment, but it suddenly dawned on her, (no pun intended), what Yasmine was talking about. Just the past weekend, Dawn had had a Parent/Teacher conference because of the days she'd missed because of running from Glory and all that. She had been there. So had Willow, as back-up if you will. And so was the Buffybot. The hastily repaired and only partially reprogrammed Buffybot.

Needless to say… it was not pretty.

"Oh, uh, don't worry about me Yasmine, I can so get over whatever my sister does. I'm not her, nor do I ever plan on _being_ her in the future," Dawn answered confidently, while adding silently to herself, _'At least not the robotic one.'_

"Yeah, glad you're so confident of that. I meant the stuff she said about you?"

Dawn stared at the girl, uncomprehending.

"You know, about the whole crying thing?"

Dawn arched an eyebrow, mostly in disbelief, but some in anger. "You do remember that my mother died, in my house, on my couch, less than four months ago, _you know_?" she mimicked Yasmine's phrase. Then she turned and totally gave the bitch the brush off, heading for her next class.

--

After school, Xander was the one picking up Dawn. They were silent for the first few minutes after he had, but it didn't last too long. Silence was not very appreciated amongst the gang these past couple weeks.

"So, still teaching the Buffybot how to drive?" Dawn asked.

Xander shot her a sidelong glance, but did grin easily at her. "Nah. Got off early and everybody else is at the Magic Box. Still looking…" Xander's voice broke for a moment, but he quickly moved himself past it, "… still looking for what exactly happened to Buffy, and see if there's… and to see what we have to do to get her back." Xander added firmly.

Dawn smiled thankfully at Xander. No wonder she used to have a crush on him. He was trying to be the rock of the group, same as she was. He always did that, whether with a joke, or just trying to get to the root of the problem, he always tried to be the central pillar for everybody else. Except when he was being selfish that is. Or cautious, considering the two vampires the Scooby gang had associated with in the past.

Five minutes away from the store, Xander suddenly stopped the car and put it in park. "Xander?" Dawn asked, worried.

Before his name was fully out of her mouth, Xander was sobbing, openly and almost loudly. He hit his head on the steering wheel a few times. "What are we going to do Dawn!? What!? Giles has all but given up hope, Anya keeps knocking down everyone's ideas, even Willow's starting to give up hope! What are we going to do!?" he cried.

Dawn unbuckled herself and immediately embraced her friend. "It… it's gonna be ok Xan, it's gonna be ok," Dawn whispered to her friend, and started crying herself. She finally let herself feel all the grief she could stand at the moment and shared it with her friend.

"I don't know what we're going to do, but I'll tell you what we aren't going to do," Dawn said forcefully. "_We_ aren't going to give up hope. _We_ are going to push the others on, and we're going to prove Anya and Giles wrong by finding some way to bring Buffy home. We _will_." She added firmly, both for herself and Xander.

Xander finally, after a few minutes more of crying, nodded his head. "Come on, let's get going." He started the car back up and they were on their way again.

"Never give up hope Xander," Dawn said quietly. "Never give up hope. If she can, Buffy will find her own way back to us, and we'll never stop looking for her. Never give up."

"Never give up," Xander repeated silently, memorizing the short phrase that would soon and forever become the two's motto and would drive them to great things. Terrible things, but great nevertheless.

[AU 01: "The Untouched Universe"]

_Night of Glory Final Battle_

_Sunnydale, CA_

Buffy groaned as she slowly came to. Her entire body ached and buzzed. More in the 'my leg fell asleep' buzz than anything else, except across her entire body, making her want to stay as still as possible. Until she heard the sounds of battle.

Groaning in pain and grunting with the effort of uncooperative muscles, Buffy managed to get herself to all fours before looking around her, trying to see what had happened to her. The last thing she remembered was…

Jumping. Into the portal. And it was closing on her. That spurred energy to the tousled Slayer's muscles and she managed to get to her feet. She looked down and blushed slightly as she saw her clothes were singed, and her sweater was nearly burned away. Luckily, she had her sports bra on underneath it, so she wasn't in any danger of indecent exposure.

The sounds of battle reached her again and Buffy looked around again, trying to mark her location and where the battle might be taking place. She was surprised to see herself in the same construction yard that Glory's tower had been built in.

Speaking of which, there it was, but there was no open portal… or Dawn at the top of it!

Buffy quickly raced straight for the base of the tower, which was actually where the sounds of battle were coming from. She didn't pause to think this through. Her 'inner Slayer' had taken over and at the moment that was all that she had left after everything else she had been through tonight.

She didn't say anything when she saw that it was a battle between the rest of the Scooby's and Glory, or that another her was the one actually fighting the Hellgod. She was surprised to see her healed after the beating she'd given her early, and wondered why Ben had gone back on his promise to leave.

Whatever, Glory was in charge now, and she was not to be reasoned with. Buffy ran towards the fight as fast as her superhuman legs could carry her. Ten feet away, she launched herself into the air, and timed exactly right, her foot landed a kick to the back of Glory's head, knocking her forward into the punch of the other Buffy she had been trying to avoid. That punch knocked the Hellgod to the ground, making her sputter as she ate dirt.

"WHAT!?" Glory raged, trying to figure out what had happened.

Buffy glanced down at the raging god, not lowering her guard for an instant. Experience taught her that. She took the time to glance at her counterpart, and almost started as she saw differences that shouldn't have been. The hair was the same, except that her own was now looking like she'd been struck by lightning, but the girl beside her was wearing a solid red sweater instead of the white one she'd been wearing before. She was also carrying the hammer.

It was also at that moment when she realized that her look of shock was mirrored back at her from the other Buffy, something the Buffybot, no matter Willow's fast programming, couldn't do. Just then however, Glory got back to her feet and glowered at the two Slayers, quickly dispelling any shock they still had at the sight of each other.

"Oh, so you repaired the robot. Well, that was fast, but it won't do you any good Slayer!" Glory raged, even more incensed than she had been when Buffy was beating the stuffing out of her. However, Glory was speaking to the Buffy in the whole red sweater.

_'I am NOT the bot!'_ Buffy raged in her own mind. One quick look with her double and suddenly a plan began to form in the Slayer's mind. One she saw mirrored in her double's face. With a quick and silent nod to each other, the Slayers moved in tandem, like perfect mirrors of each other, flipping away from each other in order to bracket the Hellgod.

"What the…" Glory looked on in confusion as first Buffy backhanded her, and then the other Buffy slammed her with the hammer, and then Buffy kicked her back for another blow to the hammer, and the another kick, another blow, and finally, Buffy did a roundhouse to Glory's head while the other Buffy did a massive windup to land a slam to the head by the hammer that sent the Hellgod flying, and then crashing, into the hastily constructed tower.

"Who are you?" Buffy in the red sweater asked the one that looked like she'd been struck by lightning.

"Later, we've got a Hellgod to stop. Where's Dawn?" Buffy was almost panicked as she didn't see her sister anywhere.

"I'm here," Dawn called as she came from behind some of the construction materials, guarded and guided by Spike. She was in the same dress Buffy had last seen her in, but…it wasn't cut.

Buffy sighed in relief and almost went to hug her sister, when Glory started screaming and the tower began to collapse in on itself. Gulping, she just tensed further and waited for the familiar blur to appear. Spike immediately picked up Dawn and carried her out of there as fast as he could.

"I really don't care who you are, but I could really use the help," the other Buffy said, readying the hammer. Buffy only nodded, not saying anything.

Shortly, the expected blur came and then suddenly stopped before the two Slayers'. Glory, looking unscathed save for her messed up hair, stood before them, her eyes screaming pure murder. "You stupid _BITCH_! It's all ruined! Now I have to wait another stupid ten years for the portal to be ready again! Thanks to your interference now I'm stuck on this backwater—"

She never finished as a crossbow bolt suddenly struck her chest. "HEY!" she raged at the shadows, "I WAS NOT THROUGH VENTING YET!"

"Should have taken Ben's warning Glory and gotten out of Dodge when you had the chance," Buffy said before she leaped forward and started to attack the surprised Hellgod.

Glory might as well have been ignoring her attacks as she asked, "What the hell are you talking about? Ben does not give me warnings, I give _him_ warnings, and threats and…stop hitting me!"

Glory made to backhand the Slayer, but the one with the hammer quickly interceded and struck Glory with the hammer, knocking her back to the ground.

"Yeah, what warning?" the other Buffy asked.

Buffy looked at her, confused for a moment before suddenly, with a bloody mouth, Glory began convulsing, and shifted into Ben. "This one," Buffy told her other before kneeling beside Ben and glaring him in the eye. "Leave," she said in a way that broke no argument. "Leave and never come back. If you ever come after my family again, you or Glory…"

"We won't, I swear," Ben gulped as he began to choke on his own blood. Buffy just sneered down on him and stood back up.

"Exactly what I would have said, ten minutes ago," the other Buffy said, looking her other up and down. Slowly, Ben got to his feet, and before anybody could say or do anything more, another crossbow bolt landed squarely in his chest, right where the heart was. Ben looked down dumbly for a moment before falling back to the ground. The Buffys looked on, identical shock in both their expressions.

"No," both Buffy's said at the exact same moment in the exact same tone.

From behind them walked a man that neither of them thought capable of what they had just witnessed. Rupert Giles, wearing a leather jacket and a crossbow in his hands walked up behind the two blonde Slayers, staring in mourning at the dead body before them, before he switched to one of classic shock at seeing _two_ Buffys, and knowing that neither was the Buffybot, as it was damaged during the initial confrontation with Glory.

"What? How? Who?" he stuttered through the questions.

"Giles! How could you?!" both Buffys turned on him, saw the crossbow and connected the dots at the same speed. They both bore an identical expression of hurt that cut Giles through his shock and straight into the grief that would be with him through to the end of his days. The disappointment… and the fear.

Both Buffy's then turned on each other, wondering where the other had come from. "And who are you? Where did you come from? Stop doing that!!" Then they both huffed, crossed their arms and turned their backs on the other.

Then, suddenly, the one that looked like she'd been through hell, in a half burned off white sweater, started and cried out, "Dawn!" and immediately started running in the direction Spike had gone off in. The other Buffy started as well, but did not cry out and just chased after her double, bringing Giles behind them.

Luckily, Spike had just gone straight to the Magic Box with Dawn, and all of the Scoobies were meeting there in the aftermath.

Buffy got there first, and the moment she and Dawn saw each other, they raced forward and embraced. Spike hung back, feeling and looking uncomfortable.

"Dawn, are you all right?" Buffy asked.

"I'm better now," Dawn said sarcastically. Then she beamed up at the older Summers, "You were great! I can't believe you actually stopped Glory! You did beat her, right?"

"Dawn!" the other Buffy, Dawn's older sister, cried from the entrance with Giles. "Get away from her!"

Buffy was already letting go of Dawn, more from the younger Summers words than her double's. Dawn snapped back out of the charred Buffy's arms when she saw her sister at the door. "But…Buffy, what's going on?"

"I don't know, but just get away from her. Spike, protect her!" the other Buffy ordered as she walked up to her double, who was staring off into space.

"But… I didn't stop Glory…" Buffy mumbled right as the other Buffy got into hearing range. "The… the portal opened and I… I had to save Dawn… I jumped… because death… was my gift…" Buffy began to tremble as her world began to fall apart in ways she didn't begin to understand.

The other Buffy stopped her advance when she heard what her double had said and looked like. She looked like she'd been through hell, or struck by lightning… or both. Whatever this Buffy had been through… Buffy wouldn't wish on anyone. Maybe her worst enemy, but not anyone she particularly liked, especially herself.

"What happened?" the other Buffy asked her double sympathetically after a minute of tense silence.

Buffy began shaking her head, reliving the events of less than an hour previous. "Glory got Dawn… I… slipped into some kind of coma and Willow had to go in my mind to snap me out of it. Xander and Spike found the ritual that Glory needed to do in order to open the portal…Dawn's blood. "When it stopped flowing, the portal would close". I wouldn't let Dawn die, but Giles he… Willow reprogrammed the robot that Warren had made for Spike, she kept Glory busy, weakened her until I could go in with the hammer we'd gotten from the troll. Spike managed to get to the top of the tower somehow… but he fell off and some demon minion of Glory's managed to cut Dawn…"

"Doc," Dawn supplied.

Buffy went on, like she was in a trance as she relived each moment. "I… beat Glory, she reverted to Ben, and I warned him away. Then I tried to get to Dawn as fast as I could… but the portal had already opened."

At that the four that had been listening frowned and gave each other confused looks. "I… from the vision I'd had in the desert, I finally realized what it meant when it said "Death was my gift". I… I still had a piece of the Key in me from when I mixed my blood with Dawn's, after she first learned she was the Key. I had to die to save the world…my death would close the portal."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" the other Buffy suddenly exclaimed, snapping Buffy out of her trance. "_What_ vision in the desert? I never went to the desert… well, except when we were trying to escape the Knights."

Buffy frowned as she too recognized a discrepancy. "Yeah, when Spike had his robot, Giles took me out to the desert so I could get in touch with some spirit guide… to find out why I couldn't love…"

The other Buffy blinked as she recognized the tone, and statement of the visitor. "I just spent a week in LA at Angel's while he and the others went off to some other dimension to get Cordy back," she told the first Buffy, "I got in touch with some old friends and… well, it was nice to be away from the Hellmouth for a while. That's when Spike and the Buffybot made an appearance. And the portal never opened. Spike stopped Doc and got Dawn down. When we knocked the tower down, the ritual was ruined. Too late."

Buffy frowned, shaking her head, refusing to believe the alternative events. "But…"

It was at that moment that the rest of the Scooby Gang came in.

"Buff!" Xander cried, carrying an injured, _dark haired_ Anya. Apparently one of the insane people had hit her over the head with a makeshift club. Willow, cradling Tara, walked in right after the construction worker and both original Scoobies stopped and stared at the sight of two Buffys, neither, quite clearly, the Buffybot.

"Am I still insane or are there really two Buffys standing there?" Tara asked, sounding quite lucid and more confident than Buffy could ever remember her sounding.

"W-well, you ar-aren't the only one th-then," Willow stuttered, unsure.

"Giles! What's going on?" both Buffys turned as one and asked, in tandem, their Watcher.

Overwhelmed by the sudden stereo, Giles removed his glasses, wiped them, and put them on just to meet identical glares, coming from both Buffys and Dawn.

"Well, I-I-I'm not entirely sure, but… I know we need to do research," was his stuttered response.

At that moment, Anya groaned as she came around. No longer caring about the hellmouthy weirdness going on with his eyes, Xander raced forward and put his fiancé on the research table. "Ahn, are you all right?" he asked, his concern only for the woman in his arms.

"I'll live if I don't die Xander," Anya's typical annoyed voice rang out, sounding quite strong. Struggling to extricate herself from her fiancé's grip, Anya pushed herself into a sitting position on the table. Then she noticed two Buffys, but one just a little different.

She stared for only a moment before arching an eyebrow and asking the one in the half-burned white sweater, "So have you been to the world without shrimp yet?"

"Huh?" Buffy asked, seeing that the question was directed at her.

"Well clearly you're from another dimension or alternate reality or whatever the hell you wanna call it. I was just curious if you'd been to the world without shrimp yet. You haven't been to the world we sent Olag yet, have you?" Anya explained logically.

Buffy just stared wide-eyed not sure what to say. "Uh… I… I don't know. I just know that… I jumped through the portal… woke up… helped her defeat Glory." Buffy pointed at her counterpart. "Why did you wear that sweater anyway?" Buffy had to ask. The other Buffy just shrugged.

"Of course!" Giles suddenly exclaimed. When everyone looked at him expectantly he explained. "This other Buffy, that is to say, _you_," Giles pointed at the Buffy in the white sweater, "in your world, the portal obviously opened. Then you say that you jumped into it to close it. Glory had wanted to open the portal to go to her home dimension, some unidentified hell dimension. Apparently… you closed it before it could deposit you in that dimension, but it dropped you off here instead."

"So… she's from some other dimension?" the other Buffy asked.

"Alternate universe," both Anya and Giles corrected.

"OK, but what was all that about going out to the desert and being told by some spirit that I had to die?" she asked. Buffy just shrugged, refusing to answer for the moment.

"Probably… I think I know of the ritual she spoke of, but I saw no need to even bring it up with you Buffy, especially after Angel called us with that emergency that you went to take care of. Although I'm very grateful of your timely return. Speaking of which…where is the robot?" Giles asked.

The Buffys rolled their eyes and snorted. They could care less where the look-a-like doll was.

"She's still at the construction yard," Willow answered suddenly, "We'll have to pick her up later…otherwise somebody else might come across her."

Both Buffys shivered as the thought of somebody _else_ finding the robot ran through their nearly identical minds. When they noticed the same reaction on the other, they briefly shot that other a glare meant to intimidate, but ultimately, as they saw how _alike_ they were rather than the subtle differences, they just ended up laughing about it. Pretty soon all the others in the room, even Giles, started laughing along. It was the kind of laughter one had after coming down from a very long adrenaline rush. One that had lasted for weeks.

Finally, the laughter died down and Buffy had to ask, "OK, so… how do I get back home? _Without_ using the same way, cause obviously that is _so_ out of the question. And what are we gonna do with me until we figure it out?"

"You'll stay with us," the other Buffy stated resolutely.

"I-I don't want to impose," Buffy tried to back out, "I mean, I kinda know what you're going through and all… what with… everything."

The other Buffy just nodded and then shrugged. "What's one more mouth to feed? I was planning on inviting Tara and Wills to move in anyway, help with the rent and everything since Glory demolished their dorm room."

Buffy frowned as she realized that she had never thought of that.

"What?" her duplicate asked.

"Huh? Oh, it's just… I never… really thought of that. It _would_ make things a bit easier on the rent, not only with the additional income but…"

"With the whole deal that if the house has more than just one person and a minor living there, the payments get deducted over longer periods of time," she agreed.

"Cool, I'll have to remember that if I can get back home," Buffy said.

"We'll find a way Buffy," Giles said supportively.

"Right now, we all just need to get some sleep," Willow announced.

"Uh…one thing, before we all break up, just so beating the bad guy, or gal in this case, isn't the only good note we have to go out on," Xander spoke up. Then he smiled across to Anya and held his hand, which she took and stood to her feet. "We're getting married. Anya and I," Xander announced.

There was a steady silence for about twenty seconds as everybody just stared, and Anya and Xander just waited. Then, the dimension-lost Buffy threw up her hands and shouted to The Powers That Be, "Yeah, _thanks_, now I don't get to celebrate my best friend's engagement!"

"Omigawd! Congratulations Xander!" Willow cried as she and Tara stepped forward to embrace the lucky couple.

"Congratulations Anya," Tara said warmly as she hugged the ex-demon.

"Thank you Tara," Anya said gratefully.

"When did you guys get engaged?" both Buffys asked in stereo. Everyone stared, but the two of them had accepted the situation, and what with Dawn being safe they weren't going to argue over the little things at the moment.

"Uh…" Xander trailed off, too overwhelmed at the seeing double.

"Xander proposed just before the big planning session," Anya said. "While we were down in the basement, getting the Buffybot."

"No wonder she was grinning so much after that," Buffy muttered to herself, speaking of her own Anya.

"Wow, I can't believe one of the original Scooby Gang is getting engaged," Dawn said happily. "This is like so deserving of a celebration."

"Tomorrow," everyone, including Xander and Anya, said to end Dawn's statement.

"Tomorrow," Dawn agreed, then yawning herself. That was when she noticed she was still in the horrible dress Glory's minions had stuck her in. "Ugh, get me out of this and home to my bed, not necessarily in that order," she added under the double-Buffy glare.

Everyone agreed that the world was saved once more and decided to go home for the much needed rest and recuperation. In particular the addition to their group who needed as much a change of clothes as the rest. They all went home.

Continued...???


	43. Incubus Rated: R

Title: Incubus

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Buffy Early Season 2 AU. Also, something that struck me as odd, in the Buffy Premier, Giles mentioned, and had books about Incubi and Succubi, but they were never ever mentioned again nor did Buffy or anybody else ever knowingly slay one or the other. This is a somewhat perverted rectification of that gross misnomer on my part.

Summary: An Incubus attacks Xander during patrol with Buffy, and thanks to the bite, Xander is becoming a sex demon. Can the gang help Xander control his demonic impulses and learn to master his dark powers, or will they all fall under his spell of lust and passion?

Author's Notes: With the exception of this being another Halloween story, I'm trying to answer the challenge made by Kail Blade, which reads as the following;

1. Xander can dress as anything Non-human, but it shouldn't be too disgusting, but as I said, it can be anything.  
(This one does not apply since Xander gets bitten, not changed during Halloween.)

2. If you choose to, you can make it a crossover. (Not as of yet, but I'll let you know)

3. Don't go giving everyone super weapons or even guns, because all stories like that end up stupid. You can give something like that to Xander, but no one else.

4. Don't add any non-BTVS characters. You don't have to kill off Jenny, and you can kill off other characters if you wish to, but please don't make any minor characters into big ones.

5. Xander can have any and as many powers you choose, but he has to have some challenge in beating the bad guys. (The bad guy, as I'll *eventually* get to, will be Xander's demon instincts and maybe other Incubus demons, but basically he just has to keep fighting to remain as human on the inside as he can)

6. Xander HAS to get with at least one of the BTVS girls, or as many as you want. I really want this to be a NC-17, but I can understand if you can't write a sex story, but please try.

7. The change MUST prevent Xander from going to school or going out in the general public.

8. Buffy, Jenny and Cordelia must become closer to Xander, in any positive way you want, be it sexually or otherwise.

9. If Xander takes on animal characteristics, he must actively dislike Oz after he's bitten. (Fact: Werewolves and Incubi do not get along.)

10. No Slash.

11. Xander must save Faith from herself.

Author's Notes Cont... A few things to clear up. The following punctuations will indicate different formats of placement and action or any other thing in the story. They'll be identified what they mean as follows;

"Means Speech". Means Telepathy. /_'Means private thoughts'_/. {Indicates the beginning or end of someone's dream, and will identify whose}. /_Usually indicates emphasis on one word above others, but if it is inbetween the {dream markers} then it is the __content__ of that person's dream._/ /"_Means a Telephone conversation"_/ *Means BOOMING voice or distorted voice in someway.* #"Indicates another language being spoken"# (Usually will be identified which).

Story:

(PROLOGUE)

"GILES!!" Buffy screamed as she came barreling into the Library. In her arms was an openly bleeding and wounded Xander Harris. Willow, Cordelia, and Oz trailed behind them, all showing expressions of extreme worry.

Rupert Giles and Jenny Calendar quickly shot out of the Library Office at the sound of the Slayer's scream. If Buffy Summers was sounding _/this/_ distraught, it was trouble bigger than whatever worries the two adults already had.

Xander was screaming in pain, bordering on agony, even after Buffy set him down on the long table at the center of the room. His left arm was a bloody mess, covered in scratches, slashes, bites, hell there were actual chunks of meat and flesh missing from his left arm. Whereas his right arm had only a single wound, which looked more like a bruised puncture wound, which also happened to be shaped much like a large bite mark. But what confused Giles and Jenny the most was that Xander was crying over and cradling his _/right/_ arm!

"Goddess," Jenny hissed in disgust and fear at the ugly wounds and the terrible sounds Xander was making.

"Dear Lord, Buffy! What happened?!" Giles shouted even as he dived for all the available medical supplies in the Library, all four of the First Aid kits, and his ready-to-heal potion supply.

"It's all my fault," the blonde Slayer could only whimper. "It's all my fault. It's all my fault."

A resounding crack echoed through the Library, evidence of Willow slapping her best female friend.

"Snap out of it Buffy!" the redhead growled, her face and tone set to maximum 'Resolve'. "This is not, I repeat, _/not_/ your fault. Now tell Giles what he needs to know, so he can save Xander's life." Near the end her voice cracked and fell into a far more nervous and panic-stricken tone.

The Slayer, swallowing the bile that had lodged in her throat, and ignoring the stinging in her cheek, nodded and turned to her Watcher and began to explain what had happened. "This-this d-demon came out of nowhere. We were patrolling, Xander, Willow and me, then we came across Cordelia at the Bronze and I figured we should escort her home, y'know, cause of Angelus."

She paused and took a deep breath, watching as Giles methodically and professionally stopped Xander's bleeding and patching up the worst of his wounds, even as he was listening intently to her story. Willow was standing nearby handing Giles everything that he needed and throwing away the rags of gauze that had soaked through with Xander's blood. Swallowing again, reflexively, to keep from showing everyone what she'd had to eat for the last three days along with her story, she turned to focus entirely on Giles' face. Thankfully, Xander's cries of agony had quieted and now he was only moaning softly.

"I don't even know where it came from or how it got so close to us, but one minute we're all walking along, the next this demon shows up out of nowhere. Of course I make with the slaying like right off, but it was tough, let me tell you Giles. It was at least as strong as I was, but at least it was big and not as quick. Then . . ." the Slayer trailed off after that. All of the girls, save Miss Calendar, immediately shivered at practically the same moment.

"Yes?" Giles asked, distracted by patching up the final wound on Xander's left arm. When he didn't get an answer he looked up to find all three teenage girls very pale and looking quite sick. Their eyes were glazed over so he was quite certain it was a collective memory of the evening rather than Xander's current condition that had them like this. "Buffy? Girls?"

"I . . . I don't know what happened, but . . . it, the demon, it . . . did something Giles," Buffy finally managed to get out. "I don't know what, but . . . One second I'm fighting it, then it . . . did whatever it did, and the next thing I know Xander's suddenly fighting it and I'm . . ." the blonde girl's cheeks suddenly flushed red, but she soldiered on, "and I'm just standing there like I was high or something. Cordelia and Willow were standing there beside me and Xander was fighting the demon. Or, maybe he was just distracting it, I don't know, it's . . . it's so confusing!"

"Tell me about it," Cordelia whispered, sounding more vulnerable than she ever had before the group that Xander had jokingly dubbed the "Scooby Gang".

"Then what happened?" Jenny finally asked.

"I was kind of out of it for a bit there, and the three of us could only stand there and watch as the demon tore into Xander's arm. He . . ." a throaty sob escaped the Slayer's mouth, "He never once cried out, no matter how bad the demon hurt him, he just fought back with all he had, not once taking so much as one step back. Then . . . then the demon bit his other arm, and just wouldn't let go. That's when he finally screamed. And that's when I finally woke up. I ran as fast as I could to get him away from the demon, to kill it. Not fast enough," she whimpered.

Shaking herself, she continued her story, "Xander had been using some metal pipe he must have found on the ground as a weapon. He'd been using it in his right hand, but when the demon bit him . . . he, he . . ." clearing her throat, Buffy hastily wiped away the tears that were streaming down her face, ". . . he just dropped the pipe into his other hand, one that even I could see was broken just from his grip on it, and he started to beat on the demon all over again. The demon was halfway to letting go by the time I actually got to Xander's side, so I just took the pipe from Xander and shoved it through the motherfucking bastard's skull. Blunt-side in first."

Giles gave a throaty laugh, flushed in the face and save the fact that he didn't have tears in his eyes, everyone there that knew Giles knew he was feeling very emotional at that moment. "Trust Xander to be like a pit bull when his girls are in danger," he quipped, and then turned his attention to Xander's other arm.

He hissed in surprised and jumped back, raising the tension in the room to breakneck levels. Thankfully Xander had finally passed out from the pain and wounds and didn't see the expression on Giles' face. The girls, and Oz, however, did see it. Pure terror mixed with vile disgust.

"Oh my god," he hissed as he stared at Xander's bloody form.

"Giles, what is it?!" Willow wailed in confusion.

"Buffy, quickly, describe the demon. Now!" Giles ordered.

Startled, the Slayer stuttered for several moments before finally able to correctly call forth the memory of the demon's appearance. "Uh, it, it, uh, was, uh, I think, yeah, OK, it was like really tall, but like thin, skeletal almost, like it didn't have any meat on its bones. It had furry little legs, kinda like that guy at the beginning of the play "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe", the one that wasn't fully human and had the furry pants on?"

"Oh dear god, a satyr," Giles mumbled. At everyone's questions of protest, he just waved for Buffy to move on.

"Uh, OK, and it was red. Not scaly red like that Trlgoth last week, but just like red skin, or red fur too I suppose," the Slayer rolled her eyes up in thought before shaking herself and pulling herself back to reality. "Anyway it also had like really sharp talons, like solid black claws. Other than that, it was just your typical demon, ugly face, still basically man-shaped but a really ugly, tall, and skinny man, oh, and it had horns too."

"Horns?" Giles looked up, the terror back on his face. "Quickly Buffy, describe them! What did the horns look like? What kind of horns were they?!"

Seeing, and knowing how dire the situation was, Buffy didn't comment on Giles yelling at her over a demon's horns, instead she just concentrated her memory and cast for any kind of comparison in order to describe them accurately enough.

"I don't know," she finally said, grasping for any and all information in her mind. "They were horns. Demon horns. They were red like the rest of the guy. Kind of curved, but not recurved, like a ram's or tiny pointed ones like a goats. More like they went straight and then they curved outward, almost like . . . I don't know, almost like a crown. And they were long too. At least two feet each."

Giles cursed and lowered his eyes, and cursed again. "Did it also have a prehensile tail? A tail it used like it was a third arm or something," he added at Buffy's confused look at his vocabulary.

"Yeah, it did," she said in no small amount of wonder as she recalled that detail. "So you know what it is?" she asked for clarity.

Giles, shamefaced, nodded his head, turning away from the teenagers to face the books around them.

"Wait, so if it was just you three and Xander, where did you come into play Oz?" Jenny asked suddenly.

"I was driving by, on my way home actually, when I heard the commotion. I knew Willow was on patrol with Buffy and Xander tonight, so I figured better to be safe than sorry. I came in at the last after the demon let go of Xander and then disappeared in a pillar of fire. Very Satan-stereotype that one was. I helped get Xander in the van, then I drove us here," the bass-guitar-playing werewolf answered.

"Pillar of fire?" Giles repeated, for once looking hopeful.

"Yeah, it did. I would have gotten to that part, but somebody kept interrupting," Buffy grouched.

"What's pillar of fire mean Giles?" Willow whined, begging for any good news at all.

"It means the demon was successfully vanquished, thankfully," Giles answered, and then he looked Xander over again. "Remarkable. Truly remarkable. You my dear boy, have more luck than all the Leprechauns in Ireland."

"What's that mean?" Cordelia snapped.

"Giles," Buffy interrupted, "Start explaining. What was that demon? Is . . . is Xander going to be all right?"

Giles mournfully looked around the room and gave forth a great sigh. Removing his spectacles, he began to rigorously clean them. "No Buffy, I'm afraid Xander is not going to be all right. Not ever again I'm afraid."

"NO!!" Willow screamed and almost attacked the Watcher.

"He's going to live," Giles quickly amended his statement, "but he's not going to be all right. No, he will not be all right at all." The Englishman was staring at the bruise-mark on Xander's right arm again.

"The only thing Xander complained about on the way over here was that bite mark on his arm there," Buffy quickly revealed. "The rest of it he hardly even noticed, but he was screaming like he was . . . like he was dying about that bite mark, and it didn't look at all bad, hell, it looks even better now than it did earlier."

The Slayer's face suddenly darkened and she took three menacing steps towards her Watcher until she was in his personal space. "Now. Giles. You are going to tell us what's going to happen to Xander, and you're going to tell us now. Or else."

Buffy never said 'or else', not when making conversation, not even when making active threats in her banter with demons and vampires when she killed them. And she certainly never said it in a tone that promised instant and quite painful death if the person actually chose the 'else'.

Giles tried to back away, but Buffy's hand lashed out and actually lifted the taller gentleman at least a foot and a half off the ground, and yet still kept his face right in front of hers. "GILES!" she screamed in his face, giving him no other choice.

"The demon was an Incubus!" he finally shouted, revealing so much. Too much.

The blonde dropped him, her eyes wide and her face horrified. A face that was easily copied to all the others in the room, save the two that were now unconscious.

"What does that mean?" Cordelia asked after a lengthy silence. Unlike her usual form, she was very pale and she had not asked the question with the tone of the superior asking for an answer they thought they deserved.

"I-I-I . . . I don't know," the Slayer finally confessed, very pale herself.

Willow, on the other hand, was standing very still and her eyes showed she was not all together there, and when she spoke it was with a detached voice. "Incubi are sex-demons," she explained to them clinically, her detachment making the situation even more surreal than it already was. "They are the male form of Succubi, or in the singular, Succubus and Incubus. They're commonly known for raping women and turning them into sex slaves. They're powerful upper level demons, and one of the few of those that have the ability to procreate through infecting humans with their essence. Either through impregnating a human female, or by infecting a human male with some kind of venom. Because of that, and that alone, they are hunted and despised by many other demons, citing jealousy of the Incubi capability to make an army of themselves, much the way vampires could, but because Incubi and Succubi are Upper Level Demons, most other demons feel that was too much power. Giles must have recognized the bite mark as that of an Incubus, and now Xander's probably going to turn into an Incubus himself."

They all just stared at the still redhead, Oz actually making an expression of extreme concern.

"Uh, Wills, are . . . are you OK?" Buffy asked quietly, tentatively stepping forward.

Willow blinked, the first time, they all realized, that she had in several long minutes. "No, not really," she said in that detached sort of way. Then she fainted.

Buffy barely managed to move herself quickly enough to catch her best friend, but caught her she did.

Taking charge of the situation, which she was still thinking was entirely her fault, Buffy stood up, now holding the unconscious Willow and turned to Oz.

"Oz, take her home. Put her to bed then get back here. Miss Calendar, wake Giles up. Cordelia, start some coffee or just some really strong tea if Giles doesn't have any. I'll finish patching Xander up and then we start researching. We are not going to lose Xander to this. We are going to find a cure and we are going to save him just like he saved . . ." her voice broke but she kept on, "just like he saved us. Recriminations and blame can wait until after. Right now we have a friend's life on the line and we are not going to waste time on stupid shit. Now let's get going people! NOW!" she shouted when nobody had moved.

At once, everyone surged into motion to their assigned tasks, not wasting any time. Oz quickly carried Willow out of the Library while Cordelia sped to the Library Office. Jenny started slapping Giles until he finally roused, while Buffy quickly turned to Xander and started to finish up the patch job that Giles had started. When no one was looking, the Slayer cast a furtive glance about, and then leaned down close to her Xander-shaped friend, tears streaming from her eyes and her face marred by guilt.

"I'm so, so sorry Xander. It's all my fault. But don't you worry. We're going to save you. Because that's what we do, right? Remember? We save people. We save the world. And we're _/going/_ to save you. I promise you that."

Before she lost all control, the Slayer straightened and went about trying to make him more comfortable. She never noticed how he opened his eyes to stare at her, nor the grin of reassurance he had on his face for the moments before he lost consciousness again.


	44. Incubus Rated: NC17

(PART1)

He was in a hell of a lot of pain. It began from the mark he knew was on his arm and then spread out like a wave of fiery agony. But the pain wasn't the worst of it. No, pain was almost a constant part of his everyday life and had been for years, from the abuse of his father and parents, to the jocks at school, to the vampires and demons at night on patrol with the others. Pain, one could say, was almost his constant companion.

No, the pain was definitely not the worst of it. It was the dreams. Or nightmares really. Night terrors more like it as he was forced to watch the vision floating through his consciousness.

Oh, he knew he was unconscious, for starters the pain was less noticeable, more like background noise rather than a present and ignorable agony. The other part was he'd always been at least partially aware that he /_was_/ dreaming whenever he found himself dreaming and this was no different. Except for what he was dreaming about.

{Xander's Night Terrors}

_/"Noooo! Please, oh god, please NOOOO!" It was Buffy. Screaming as she was dragged across the ground against her will. Her fingers even dug into the cement of the road, leaving trenches in her wake, her hands now bloody and broken from her attempt at escape./_

_/"Noooo! Stop it! Oh god, please, just stop it, please!" she cried as she was dragged onto a patch of barren earth, devoid of anything but mud and dirt./_

_/Suddenly, whatever was dragging her along, stopped and then flipped her over and repeatedly punched and hit the cowering Slayer until even he could barely recognize her face. In a motion faster than the eye could follow, Buffy's pants were torn open and immediately forced to past her knees./_

_/"NOOOO! Oh god, someone PLEASE! NOOOO!" she cried./_

_/The same motion had her panties ripped right off of her body and then stuffed into her mouth as a gag. Next her top, shirt and bra beneath it, were torn right down the middle revealing the healthy tanned skin of her torso. What remained of her top and her jacket were then stripped off of her and somehow bonds were made that held her arms spread eagle out from her body. Her muffled screams were loud and piercing but unintelligible./_

_/Her thighs were shoved open and spread apart. Xander Harris's face came into view directly above her, his engorged cock waiting at her nether lips. Buffy's eyes went wide and she screamed even louder through her soiled panties./_

_/With a savage grunt, and a cruel smirk, Xander lunged forward and took her . . ./_

_/Willow's cheeks hollowed as she increased suction. The hot pulsing member in her mouth twitched with pleasure and the innocent looking redhead smiled with delight around the phallus passing through her lips. She looked up into cruel, demanding and savage dark eyes, magnified by the evil smirk on his face./_

_/Luckily for her, he saw no anger or deception in her eyes as she gazed up at him from her giving him a blow job. He saw only blind love and adoration of a broken slave to its master. It meant he didn't have to interrupt his blow job to kill her./_

_/Instead, he just roughly grabbed her by the crimson locks and forced her to take more of his impossible length down her throat until he actually saw her neck bulge and expand around him with each thrust. He pushed harder, faster, getting closer to his own selfish orgasm./_

_/The pale girl's face began to flush red, and then, as he no longer allowed his member to fully exit her throat for even a moment, purple and a darker red, her eyes bugging out as she asphyxiated. To ensure his pleasure, he harshly pushed down on the back of her head, forcing himself even further down her throat into her esophagus, her eyes now bugging out of her head in an almost inhuman manner, the red veins of the eyeballs bursting, flooding her eye with red blood./_

_/He roared as he felt the potent semen swell in his balls and then expand his cock wider as it exploded out of him and directly into the poor girl's stomach, the bulge of the built-up cum stretching and breaking her larynx and esophagus in several places./_

_/With a final gasp of pleasure, he smoothly pulled the still-warm corpse off his cock and leaned forward to look at her bloody and bruised face. Looks like I ended up killing her anyway, oh well, he thought to himself before tossing the dying body away like it was less than nothing. Xander stood and walked away without so much as a glance back, not even when Willow gave one last attempt at life, and ended up regurgitating all his cum, a lot of blood, and half her guts, thereby drowning in her own fluids before finally dying entirely./_

_/"No! NO!! You can't do this to me! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!!!" Cordelia Chase screamed as her ass was penetrated by her rapist's hard tool._

_/She was tied down, naked, her hips and ass raised up by both the cold metal chair she'd been put on and the way she'd been tied. Xander leaned down over her, grabbed her long brown mane and used it as reins to increase the pace of his thrusts. She screamed bloody murder before choking on her own spit, and then could only moan in despair and mounting lust as he just kept going faster, harder, drilling deeper into her in the most painful of ways./_

_/Seeing that she was beginning to enjoy it some, Xander cruelly, and without mercy, moved one of his hands to her tits and began pawing and mauling them, like they were fleshy handle holds. Her cries began anew, the pain making her go insane as her pleasure, against her will, kept rising and taking hold of her reactions./_

_/Against her will, she came, fighting every sensation, hating herself, her body, but above all else, her tormentor. "!!!" she came, in her shame, and broken./_

_/He stared without mercy at the broken figure, chained to the wall, naked save her chains, bloody, beaten, superficial injuries. He took a drag from a smoking cigarette, then a long shot from a bottle of alcohol in his other hand./_

_/She heard him. Looking up, Xander could see Jenny Calendar's face. She didn't try to cover her nudity, didn't meet his eyes either. It was more like she looked through him, like she couldn't really see him. Her spirit was crushed, and her body was following slowly./_

_/Taking another drag and another shot, he stepped towards her, unzipped himself, and then relieved himself. His piss drenched her hair and face, but still she didn't really react. Oh, her mouth opened to take the nourishment, though that was hardly nourishing. But she was as good as dead. She couldn't really do anything anymore. Except die./_

_/After relieving himself, he just turned and left, leaving her chained to that wall, slamming a locked door behind him, leaving her to rot./_

It went on and on and on. Sometimes his closest friends, sometimes just girls he'd seen around school. But always it was him, and he was doing . . . things to them. Horrible, wrong things. He couldn't take it anymore, and kept trying to wake up, but he couldn't. Something wouldn't let him.

And so it continued, the images, visions, dreams, pure terrors one right after the other, a never ending cycle of cruelty, sadism, and sexual lust. It continued until Xander felt he would lose his mind or his soul, one or the other. When it did finally end, he'd stopped fighting the images, becoming numb to it, no longer caring that it was his friends and loved ones that he was doing these things to. He no longer cared.

//////////

Buffy was softly crying as she wiped a wet cloth over Xander's forehead. He'd started having nightmares a while ago, tossing and turning in his sleep, sometimes moaning a "No" or a "Stop" here and there, then an hour ago he'd gone strangely still, still dreaming, but now he seemed like he was sad instead of fighting whatever he was seeing.

She wished she could help him, but when he'd first started having nightmares and she'd tried to wake him up, something . . . bad had happened. For a second, just a second, it felt like the same sensation of what the demon, the Incubus had done to her and the others. After that, she'd left Xander to his nightmares, not wanting to ever feel . . . that . . . again.

Willow came in a while later, they had put Xander in Giles' office on the couch, and pulled up a chair next to the Slayer, beside the unconscious young man. "How is he?" she asked.

"Still sleeping. He'd been having nightmares earlier, but he seems to have calmed down some now," the Slayer answered. "When did you get back?"

"It's morning Buffy," Willow pointed out with a burst of sympathy.

The blond turned to look at the window and saw that indeed the sun had risen and was actually quite high in the sky. "Oh," she replied, then turning back to Xander and wiping his forehead with the cloth again. "How's the research coming? Giles suggested that I watch Xander, in case he suddenly got some kind of . . . demon strength or something."

"Not good," the redhead answered, "Everything we have on Incubi and Succubi is about their abilities, strengths, weaknesses, patterns of behavior . . . and how to kill them. Nothing about curing an Incubus bite. At least nothing that's worth anything. There are a few things from like the Salem Witch Trials or witch hunts about "curing" the mark of the devil, like drowning, or branding or meaningless drivel like that. Giles is on the phone with some contacts of his in England. Some kind of Coven I think he said."

"Well, maybe they'll have something," Buffy remarked, sounding tired.

"You should get some sleep Buffy," Willow suggested, "I'll watch over Xander for a while. If he wakes up or does anything, I'll be sure to get you immediately. But you won't do anybody, least of all Xander, if you're half-asleep."

"You're probably right, but . . ." she protested.

"You don't have to go home, in fact you could even lay down in here somewhere, I'm sure Giles wouldn't mind if you slept on his desk or in his chair. It's not like he's using them for the moment."

"Yeah, but . . ."

"No buts. Sleep Missy," Willow put on her resolve face.

"OK," she quietly agreed, then went over and grabbed an extra blanket before heading out to the main library, probably to fall asleep on the table. "But you'll call me the second he wakes up, won't you?"

"Get some sleep Buffy," the redhead insisted, physically pushing the super-powered girl from the office.

"Going, I'm going," the blond retorted, leaving Willow alone with Xander.

The redhead instantly took the same point of vigil the Slayer had been in only moments before, looking over her lifelong friend with a concerned eye. "Please be OK Xander," she quietly begged, "Please."

As though in answer, the boy groaned and his head turned towards her. Excited that he might be waking up, Willow moved closer and cried happily, "Xander?"

He groaned again, but then his head turned the other way, and then right back towards her. He groaned a third time, this time arching his neck before moaning in a way she'd never heard him do before. When he made the sound again, this time his entire back arched off of the couch and she blushed bright red in embarrassment as she realized what was going on.

"Definitely not having nightmares anymore," she whispered to herself, flushed sitting back in her seat.

//////////

Willow could not have been more wrong. The night terrors didn't stop, in fact they'd only gotten more and more gruesome and cruel, but something had changed for Xander. At first he could only watch without stopping as "he" did things to his friends and loved ones, slowly becoming numb to seeing himself commit such atrocities. Now, that he'd been effectively acclimated to the scenes, the dreams truly changed as he wasn't watching "himself" do those things, but he started to /_do them_/ and felt the things happen as they happened to him in the dream. The truly scary part was that he . . . felt things that normally he was sure he wouldn't, and not just the sensations of blood, hitting soft flesh, or raping a tight pussy or ass. He /_felt_/ things like pleasure at causing a scream of pain, ecstasy at feeling blood and broken skin beneath and between his fingers, and all the time an utter contempt for those that he "punished" in his dreams.

His mind nearly reeled at the conflict that welled up within him, but the core of him, /_HE/_ fought it and remembered what he truly was even while feeling what these night terrors were forcing him through. At first the terrors continued as always, but suddenly, when he could no longer stand that . . . that /_contempt/_, his core, /_HE/_ changed it. The night terrors were still cruel, sexual torments, but there was no more blood, no more contempt. Instead replaced by a feeling of . . . caring, or love. Which in its own way could have been even more insidious than holding nothing but contempt for his dream-victims, Xander now felt love for them, and "believed" that even while doing such horrible things to them, he was doing it because he loved them and they loved, no, needed him to do such things to them.

_Continued ONLY If Requested by more than 10 DIFFERENT people..._


	45. Harry Potter Slaves of Hogwarts PREVIEW

Chapter One: _Gryffindor_

(PREVIEW)

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall once they were all standing before her. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room."

"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor I assure you. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours."

"And then, as I am sure certain of you are aware by now," her eyes lingered for a moment on Neville's cloak, which was fastened under his left ear, and on Ron's smudged nose, while Harry nervously tried to flatten his hair. "Immediately after the Sorting Ceremony, you will all be asked to demonstrate the level of your magic control. Once that has been completed, after a bit of paperwork and organizing, you will join your houses at their tables. Until the Ceremony is officially ended, remain with the group or where I or another of the Professors direct you to."

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting. Now, form a line and follow me," she said with a mischievous twinkle in her eye as she lead them all into the Great Hall directly, taking them up to the front of the room right before the Head Table where all the Professors and Faculty sat.

Harry had never even imagined such a strange and splendid place. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles that were floating in mid-air over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. Professor McGonagall led the first years up to the open space between the dais where the Head Table sat and the main floor where the House Tables sat. She then arranged them all so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them. The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in the flickering candlelight. A moment more of arranging later and all the girls were on the left half of the line and the boys on the right half.

Professor McGonagall silently stepped forward and placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool she put a pointed wizard's hat. This hat was patched and frayed and extremely dirty.

Maybe they had to try and get a rabbit out of it, Harry thought wildly, that seemed the sort of thing magicians did all the time, but he hadn't been able to 'conjure' anything, though it had been mentioned in the Transfiguration textbooks he'd read in preparation for tonight. Suddenly his thoughts came to a grinding halt, noticing that everyone in the hall was now staring at the hat, he stared at it too. For a few seconds there was nothing but complete silence. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide, like a mouth, and the hat began to sing!

"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty, but don't judge on what you see, I'll eat myself if you can find a smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black, your top hats sleek and tall, for I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat and I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head the Sorting Hat can't see, so try me on and I will tell you where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart, their daring, nerve, and chivalry set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff, where they are just and loyal, those patient Hufflepuffs are true and unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if you've a ready mind, where those of wit and learning, will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin you'll make your real friends, those cunning folk use any means to achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid! And don't get in a flap! You're in safe hands (though I have none) for I'm a Thinking Cap!"

The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.

After the applause had faded, Professor McGonagall pulled out a long scroll, which came with its own auto-dictation floating quill, and began to read off the names alphabetically. Harry had half expected, from what he'd learned from Hagrid, for them to start with the soon-to-be wizards and witches after, but apparently for the Sorting itself it didn't matter and it was strictly alphabetical, whether witch or wizard. So after "Abbot, Hannah" was called first, he spent about two minutes filled with confusion until "Boot, Terry" was finally called and he caught on to what was going on.

Thankfully he was practically right in the middle with a name like 'Potter', but also given the sheer popularity that came with his name, he was dreading his turn more and more with each passing name. He paid some attention to the girl Hermione and Neville as well when they both got sorted into Gryffindor.

That was something that had confused Harry at first, until he'd read _Hogwarts, A History_ and it explained in a fair amount of reasoning why everyone was sorted into their Houses first and then... divided up for passing muster or not. Simply put, it cut down on 'bidding frenzies' and fights over the more popular picks.

Finally, after Patil, Patil, and Perks, it was his turn.

"Potter, Harry," the Professor called out as she had for all the others, except that the whole hall went quiet and whispers started, most just repeating the name over and over again.

Gulping down his nervousness, Harry stepped forward and carefully sat down on the stool and allowed the witch to place the Sorting Hat upon his head. The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.

"Well now, let's take a look here and see what we've got to work with," said a small voice in his ear. "Hmm. Difficult. Very difficult. Loads of courage. Not a bad mind either. Plenty of raw talent too. Ah, now that's interesting. A strong drive to prove yourself... Very interesting indeed. Now then, where to put you..."

Having had a small sampling of what he considered to be what each House was made up of, even if all the people he'd met so far had gone into Gryffindor in the end, he saw Hufflepuff's loyalty in Neville, Ravenclaw's intelligence in Hermione, Gryffindor's stubbornness in Ron and Slytherin's general attitude in Draco Malfoy. That was more than enough to make up Harry's mind on where he _didn't_ want to go.

_'Not Slytherin, not Slytherin, not Slytherin, not Slytherin, not Slytherin,'_ he thought over and over in his head, given that the Hat was reading his mind at the time he figured it was the thing to do.

"Not Slytherin, eh?" the Hat responded to his thoughts. "Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that, even if they have gotten rather inbred the past couple generations... Well, if you're sure, then it'd better be GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry heard the last word shouted out loud for the whole Hall to hear. He felt the Hat lifted off his head and he grinned widely upon seeing the revelry that the Gryffindor Table was making upon his announcement. Instead of racing over to join the table, he did as instructed and walked back to his place in line as all the others had. Once the noise from Gryffindor table had quieted down, the Sorting resumed and Professor McGonagall proceeded with reading off the names of the remaining students.

In the end, Ron joined Gryffindor as well and the last person, Blaise Zabini was sorted into Slytherin. Once the stool and hat were taken away, Professor McGonagall addressed the First Years anew.

"Congratulations each of you on being placed with your respective Houses. As has already been explained, you each now contribute to a greater whole where your merits breed rewards, and your misbehavior deals out punishment. There is one more thing that must be done before you are allowed to join your Houses at their tables for the feast and should not take very long at all. Please, if you would all turn around and face the Head Table."

Obediently the entire line of First Years, roughly forty children all together, turned on the spot so they were now facing the dozen or so imposing figures of those seated at the Head Table. Professor McGonagall continued speaking to them.

"Now what we are going to have you do is something that is _commonly_ referred to as 'Muster'. For those of you not with previous knowledge of this, quite simply it is a small demonstration to rate your individual learning ability when it comes to magic. This is done by teaching all of you a very simple spell right here and now. There will be only one chance at this you must understand, and done all together in front of the whole school in order to discourage cheaters. Once you have successfully cast this spell, you will then be divided into two basic social groups that will be further divided up after the feast."

"For those of you that are First Generation Magic Users," the elder witch referred to all the muggles in the gathering, "I inform you now, even if you are already well aware that there is a social policy in the Wizarding World that by agreeing to attend Hogwarts and by being here today, you have all agreed to take part in. This was started many years ago and it has been found to be a very effective policy in maintaining social order in our society. I am sorry to also inform you that if you were not previously aware of this social policy and do not wish to participate, the opportunity to decline passed when you stepped through the portal at Platform 9 ¾. Before we begin, I am allowed to answer one question, and one question only, from each of you. Please choose your question wisely."

Harry knew exactly what she was talking about, and couldn't help but notice the rather... smug expression on the face of the silver-haired and bearded old wizard at the center of the Head Table. Professor Dumbledore no doubt. Hagrid's master, and undoubtedly McGonagall's too, he thought to himself.

Harry immediately raised his hand, deciding to show his 'Gryffindor Courage' a bit early on. The look in his eye made Professor McGonagall pick him first, though she had been close to choosing the bushy-haired muggleborn that was practically bouncing on the soles of her feet.

"Yes, Mister Potter?"

"You're talking about slavery, aren't you Professor McGonagall?" he questioned carefully.

He heard the gasps of shock and outrage coming from the muggleborn, the loudest coming from Hermione. He had to warn them, because otherwise he just knew they'd waste their questions that could better be spent preparing them for what he'd been allowed to learn a little over a month ago. Besides, he wasn't done with his question yet.

"The slavery of wizards over witches and the strong over the weak, those that can do magic and those that can't, is that right, Professor McGonagall?" he pressed before she could answer, the shock of his tone and question keeping her silent as he spoke.

Pressing her lips together, the Irish witch gathered herself and responded, "I said one question only Mister Potter," she glanced nervously to Dumbledore before continuing, "Seeing that it was the same question however, I'll let it slide this time. The answer to your question is yes. To give the answer as much clarification as the question was given; slavery has existed in the Wizarding World for nearly the past one hundred years, though it only became the social policy that it is today roughly sixty years past now. The term slave is used only in general. Witches, due to their natural submissiveness are the majority in this grouping, however!" she stopped and gave several hard glares to some of the snickering Pureblood males.

"However it _has_ been on occasion when a wizard is as naturally submissive as witches has proven to be, and is thus made into another wizard's slave, or on the even rarer occasion, a _witch's slave_." The Professor spent a few seconds pinning that glare of hers to those that had been laughing and were now gulping nervously.

"Mister Weasley," she pointed at Ron when he raised his hand to ask a question.

"Uh, I had heard that... arrangements could be made? To uh, well between families like, that one wizard takes in a witch, so she'll be protected and the like...?" he stuttered out his question.

"That is something that is taken care of after the feast, but you are correct and if there is an arrangement between families, the School will honor such an arrangement," she answered. They quickly moved on, most of the muggleborn wasting their question on confirming that this was no joke and there was a real risk of being enslaved before the night was through. For the witches, there was no risk, it was going to happen.

Hermione Granger had been in shock so far, ever since Harry had asked his question. She couldn't believe her ears nor what she was hearing even now! She was outraged at this kind of thing, and refused to stand for intolerance of any kind! Her eyes glinting dangerously, she raised her hand, mouth set.

Professor McGonagall saw the girl's expression and purposefully skipped her. Twice.

Seeing that, Harry risked a glance and saw Hermione's emotions laid bare, the girl's frustration and anger as plain to see as her frizzy brown mane. Seeing no one else raising their hands with more questions, besides Hermione, Harry realized that the girl was about to make a very serious mistake. If not in getting herself in trouble, then definitely by ostracizing herself with her words, whatever they may end up being. He couldn't just stand by and let that happen!

Unfortunately, he was about four people down from her and couldn't do a damn thing!

Wait... except...

"Neville!" he leaned back behind the person between him and the Longbottom heir, hissing as quietly as he could. Neville looked around confused for a second until Harry repeated his name and finally got his attention. "Stop her!" he hissed at him. "Tell her to change her question, but _stop_ her from pissing everyone off! You're the closest!"

Neville looked stricken, but he was out of time when Professor McGonagall reluctantly called, "Miss Granger..."

"_Put your hand over her mouth or something_!" Harry hissed urgently.

"Professor, you—!" Hermione started to say, but Neville suddenly grabbing her arm and shoving his right hand over her mouth cut her off.

He quickly said into her ear, "Hermione, for the love of All Magic, _stop_! I know what you're probably thinking. My family has got slaves of our own, but my Gran is the Matriarch of my family and _nobody_ messes with her. Being a slave is not an automatic sentence to inhuman treatment. If you say what you're about to say, you're going to be the target of everyone that wants to prove wizards are stronger than muggles _and_ witches! Harry knows it too, and there's a chance I'm going to be a slave too if I don't pass muster! Now please, _choose another question_!" he begged her.

Hermione stopped herself from reacting the way she'd been about to. Instead she kicked her brain into high gear and actually thought things through. Thirty seconds after Neville let go of her mouth, she raised her hand again, her eyes and expression much calmer this time.

"Yes Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall said with not a small amount of relief.

"Professor McGonagall," Hermione began, choosing her words carefully, "I understand what you are saying here is that we are demonstrating our ability to learn and perform magic to the satisfaction of Wizard Society, I also understand that those incapable of performing to the standard level are therefore demoted to the status of slave, and I understand that witches in general would be viewed as... submissive in regards to magic and society in general."

"I'm not hearing a question, Miss Granger," the Professor observed.

"I further understand that Hogwarts answers to society's demands in regards to what each generation is molded into. My question is this; if one were a muggleborn witch, and thus would have no arrangement with another family, no previous contact or experience to guarantee her... owner prior to arriving here, and if she were to 'pass muster' as the saying goes, demonstrating she is not submissive in regards to magic, yet has no man set aside to _protect_ her, what then can this muggleborn witch expect in the years to come, both at Hogwarts, and outside it?"

The Hall was silent in the wake of the 11-year-old's extremely profound question.

"She can expect to follow her master's orders," was Professor McGonagall's short reply. "If that will be all, we shall begin. No more questions? Good."

Hermione looked like she'd been poleaxed, and Harry could agree with the sentiment. Even though he'd already had a month to get 'used' to the idea of modern day _accepted_ slavery, that wasn't the kind of answer that should be given to a young girl, no matter what was about to happen. Unfortunately, neither of them had any more time to contemplate matters as the Professor was proceeding with the lesson in their first ever official magic lesson.

"This is a highly simplistic spell," she began, "If muggles could use magic, even they could perform it with enough practice. However that is exactly what we are testing here, as there will be no practice beforehand. The wand movement is a simple flick, like so," she twitched her wand forward, like she was tapping something invisible with it. "The spell is _Magus Ostendo_, that is 'muh-A-juh-Us', 'ah-ss-Ten-Doe'. On the count of three. One. Two. Three!"

Harry almost jumped, but focused his magic automatically, as he'd been practicing for the past month casting the random odd spell. The new spell _was_ simple compared to all that he'd forced himself to learn, and he did it immediately without hesitation, in concert with more than half of the entire line of First Years. Sadly, the other half did at least one thing wrong, more than that with a number of them.

From Harry's wand, seven jets of green energy shot out of the tip of his Holly and Phoenix Feather wand, before converging into one, which exploded into red and gold trails of mist that coalesced into a bright silver orb that reformed into something that kind of looked like a stag, before it suddenly Popped out of existence with a flash of blue energy, spreading out from the central point in a fiery ring of raw force! Harry just stood there, blinking, not sure of what had just happened.

After a second, he finally looked around and saw to his relief that Hermione, Neville, and Ron were all still standing on their feet, each having successfully cast the spell without a problem. The same could not be said for a number of others who were flat on their backs from the spell having back fired, or standing there with tears in their eyes as evidence of nothing happening at all.

"Excellent, excellent, excellent indeed!" Professor Dumbledore stood to his feet and lightly applauded the magic display. "Those of you that now have something in your right pockets, if you would please step over to the left here," he pointed to the First Year's right, but from his point of view it was the left.

Nervously, every one of them, even those that had successfully cast the spell, checked their right pocket. Immediately, however, all of the witches straightened and marched over to the designated area, as did a number of wizards, most of those that had been knocked flat on their backs more easily noticed of the group.

Harry felt nothing at all in his pocket and just stood there, confused.

"The rest of you may now join your Houses for the Feast," the Headmaster then proceeded with making a few announcements. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Now tuck in!"

Harry wasn't sure whether to laugh or call the crazy people doctors to come take their patient away. Instead, he turned to the table and started eating everything in sight. Just because he'd had a month Dursley-free where he made his own meals and ate as much as he wanted every day didn't mean that he couldn't still get hungry after a long day of travel!

He managed to get a spot right between Neville and Ron, barely avoiding the spot next to the Gryffindor House Ghost, and with a good line of sight on both the Head Table and the 'corral' as he heard it mentioned from one of the older years. It was really just a holding area, with a circle drawn on the stone floor that none could cross. There was a small ten-man bench table at the center of it with it own set of food. Harry couldn't help but notice that there was _not_ enough room at the small table for everyone that was in the corral at the time. Some were choosing to eat standing up, while one girl in particular, with bushy brown hair, was refusing to eat at all. Thankfully, he noticed, a number of what appeared to be Pureblood witches were convincing her to keep up her strength by eating at least a little bit. A little bit that turned into as much as Harry was eating himself.

Half an hour later, the Feast was pretty much over and friendly chattering was springing up here and there. Harry did some chatting himself, asking Neville, Ron, and Ron's brothers as many questions as he felt he could get away with. Now that he'd 'passed muster' it seemed, he felt more confident about getting the answers to those questions. Therefore, he had quite a few.

"So you're all from pure blood wizarding families?" he started with. "What's that like?"

"Crowded," the Weasley's, even Percy the prefect, all replied.

"Lonely," Neville said mournfully. "It's just me and my Gran, y'see," he said to the confused looks he got. "She's a witch and everything, but she was married to my grandfather long before the slave thing took hold, at least that's what she always tells me. We have a few slaves, mostly adult witches that Gran either bought from other wizards or the Ministry itself. There are a couple manservants, as they like to be called. Better than slave, they tell me. I almost didn't get to come. Never did much accidental magic until my uncle threw me off a balcony one day and I bounced the whole way down to the lake."

Harry shivered. "Almost wish I had the same problem," he admitted. "The Dursley's _hate_ magic and every time something weird happened, I was blamed for it."

"Sounds awful," Ron said sympathetically. "But aren't they your family? The punishments for breaking stuff couldn't have been too bad."

Harry looked at Ron like he'd just said the craziest thing imaginable.

"Only Aunt Petunia is my biological family," Harry replied coldly, losing some of his appetite. "And they never punished me for breaking things. They punished me by locking me in the cupboard under the stairs and letting me go with no food for three days anytime something the slightest bit weird happened. One time they did it just because the Weatherman on the telly predicted sunny weather and it ended up raining instead."

Half the table was now staring at Harry in horror, unable to comprehend the hero that defeated the Dark Lord being treated like... like a _slave's slave_! House Elves were treated better than what he was describing!

"So, uh, how does the master/slave thing work here anyway?" Harry blushed and tried to change the subject after noticing all the stares he was getting.

"Well," Percy polished his badge and puffed up his chest a bit. "I can explain a bit of it to you."

"Oh yes," Fred suddenly crooned, batting his eyelashes.

"Please Perfect Prefect Percy," George continued the behavior.

"You have all the answers, so..."

"Please Perfect Prefect Percy..."

"Help us learn to be good wizards!" The twins then broke down laughing.

Percy's face flushed a bright red, but he refrained from responding to the jibes.

"Allow us..." Fred addressed Harry.

"... to demonstrate exactly..." George continued seamlessly.

"... what a slave is for." Fred finished up.

"Angelina," he turned and called while George did the same, except he called for, "Alicia."

Two girls stood up from only a little ways down from the table. They both wore matching blue outfits of knee-length pleated skirts, baby blue blouses, and navy blue buttoned sweater vests. Beyond their outfits however, they were completely different.

"Angelina, be a dear and fetch us some of the pie down there at the end of the table?" Fred asked with a smile.

"Alicia, darling, would you mind ever so much in retrieving the pitcher with pumpkin juice for me?" George addressed his own slave.

Angelina Johnson, a tall black girl with long legs and a strong physique, smiled at her master then immediately turned and walked down the table to retrieve what he'd asked for. She returned only moments later with several pies to choose from. Fred took all of them and passed them around to the group. Before dismissing her, Fred reached up and held out a small metal ornament, something muggle girls might call a 'charm' usually placed on necklaces or charm bracelets. Fred calmly and confidently placed it on the simple leather choker collar around the tall girl's neck and sent her back to her seat.

Alicia Spinnet, a medium build girl with a fair complexion and dark brown hair only took a moment to pull out her wand and summon the requested jug, which immediately flew out of the hands of the person holding it and calmly sat itself down in front of George Weasley.

"You never said that I had to go and get it myself, just to retrieve it," she smugly replied to the looks she received for using her wand.

"How very true," George laughed and poured himself and his slave a cup of pumpkin juice. "And if I had meant for you to do so, believe me, I would have phrased my request with that in mind. Thank you very much, my saucy little witch." The girl blushed and quickly returned to her chair. George didn't bother looking back at her, returning to his meal.

"You should rebuke her, you know," Percy observed. "She did not receive permission to return to her seat. It could be viewed as impertinence."

George blew a raspberry and retorted, "I happen to enjoy the girl's spirit, and she's downright _mean_ on the Quidditch Field. Especially as a Chaser. Besides, no harm, no foul. She's a good person, and a good friend, so don't go lording over what is not your right to lord over, Perfect Prefect Percy."

"What he said," Fred said between bites.

"Uh, so it's just another excuse to be lazy? Having a slave?" Harry asked, very confused by the display.

The wizards all looked at him like he was crazy for a second, then Ron, Neville and the Twins briefly looked down shamefully and said nothing more. Percy, however, puffed up his chest again and looked nothing but the 'offended superior' to the hilt.

"I will have you know, Harry," Percy said to him, waving his fork around like it was a wand, "that the relationship between a wizard and his witch is incredibly... private. And intimate. It is said that while the witches offer us allegiance and service, we offer them safety and protection." The twins snorted in laughter.

Percy's face flushed red and he continued.

"That is not always the case, though there are instances..." he trailed off for a second before continuing, "Anyway, I have found in my own experience with my own school slaves that a witch's natural submissiveness tends to... define who and what they are. Being their master gives them a direction, a focus, something that further defines them and gives them purpose. Most, as you'll find in the days to come, exercise this by giving them small tasks that most would construe as laziness. Others find more... private ways of doing this. A relationship between master and slave is as complicated and diverse as any other relationship you'd care to mention. The only rule is that whatever your slave gets up to, you are responsible. If a slave misbehaves in anyway, it is up to the master to discipline her and teach her how to behave. Also as a fair warning, while certain... private things done in public are not strictly against the rules, many would consider it... rude to air your dirty laundry, so to speak."

Harry nodded along, doing his best to understand this very important lesson in his new life. Percy may have been a bit of a prat, but he certainly gave good advice when it came to the rules.

"So how do we pick our slaves anyway, Percy? No one ever explained that to me," Ron asked.

"They're picked for you, matching the best or most talented witch, or slave in the men's position, with the most talented First Year. Separated by Houses of course. Unless the chosen wizard refuses to take a slave or just that specific slave, she stays in the House and the level of the witch is matched with the level of that particular wizard," the redhead prefect answered.

"How do they pick that?" Neville asked nervously.

"With the spell you all cast while up there," he replied. "While it also determines who is worthy to be a master and who is naturally submissive, first and foremost it helps to determine magical potential. The witch with the highest potential is matched with the wizard with the greatest power. I dare say, if you wanted Harry, you can have your pick of the litter. I've never seen anyone's results from that spell explode like that before!"

"Yeah, we all saw," Ron grumbled. "Mine only fizzled out some red flames."

"All Weasley's have the same result Ron," Percy coolly informed his brother. "Nothing to be jealous over. And like I said, I've never seen _anyone's_ do what Harry's did. Except maybe that bushy-haired girl. Hers was blue and it didn't explode, but I would imagine that's who you'll be paired with. Neville, out of the Gryffindors for this year, I'd say you were the closest behind Harry, not that that's saying much. No one came close to matching Harry here."

Harry was as red as the Weasley's ever got by this point and just ducked down and ate his food.

"R-really? I didn't do much. I mean, it was just a few different shapes and streamers and stuff. I was just relieved when the spell actually worked!" Neville nervously said.

Ron considered saying something, until he remembered what had actually happened when Neville and Harry had cast the spell. He'd been paying more attention to his own burst of red flames, but he had seen that Neville's red and gold blast of power and had to admit that it was impressive. The fact that Neville was downplaying his accomplishment and Harry wasn't shoving his own accomplishment in everyone's faces helped to calm him down some. Even that witch Percy had mentioned, Hermy-something, what came out of her wand was even better than what he could do, but witches don't really count in that sort of thing.

By the time dessert came around, Ron had gotten over his jealousy and was focusing more on putting as many of the delicious treats in his belly as quickly as possible. He left the thought of who his slave would be for later, just glad to be in Gryffindor. And hopefully he and Harry would become friends too!

At last, the desserts too disappeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.

"Ahem," he coughed, "Just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you. First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."

Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley Twins.

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

Harry laughed, but he was one of the few who did.

"He's not serious?" he muttered to Percy.

"Must be," said Percy, frowning at Dumbledore. "It's odd, because he usually gives us a reason why we're not allowed to go somewhere – the forest's full of dangerous beasts, everyone knows that. I do think he might have told us prefects, at least."

"One final bit of business with the First Years and then the prefects will escort you to your dormitories," Dumbledore said. "The rest of you, if you wish, are dismissed. Will the First Years please come back up to the front? Yes, thank you."

Slowly, while the older years scattered to either go to their dorms or decided to hang around and see if there might be opportunity to 'pick' some extra Firstie that got dumped, the First Years shuffled back up to the front where only an hour before they had stood in a line to be Sorted.

Harry felt some apprehension at being back up here, but it was greatly diminished knowing that he wasn't going to be a slave. Although, the thought of _having_ a slave was more than a little disconcerting all on its own. He was only eleven years old! He wasn't ready to be responsible for another human being's life, even if that human was considered more property than a life!

"Now then," Dumbledore stood before them, eyes twinkling and a grandfatherly smile on his face, "To the matter at hand. Thankfully the ratio evened out this year. I can't tell you the headaches that come when there's one too many or one too few. Now, as I understand it, there are a few... arrangements that need to be taken care of first off. Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe, yes?"

He accepted a parchment letter from a tall sallow-faced, greasy-haired man standing nearby in stained overalls and a black labcoat. The Headmaster read the letter and nodded. The aforementioned boys stepped forward from the group of slaves off to the right. "You two have been given a special exemption. Though neither of you managed to pass muster, you will be allowed to attend classes and learn with the rest of the student population. On the condition that you never be allowed to take slaves for yourselves. Even after graduating Hogwarts. Be sure to thank your fathers for this when you write home boys."

The large boys meekly stepped forward and handed over what Harry thought to be tags of some sort, and then raced to stand behind Malfoy. Harry wondered about that, but the Headmaster was speaking again.

"Another few arrangements," he read from a second letter, "The Malfoy Family has made a pact with the Parkinson Family. Pansy Parkinson, if you'd please step forward, my dear?"

A dark-haired, pug-faced pale looking girl in a green and silver satin dress stepped forward out of the slave pin and walked immediately to the young Draco Malfoy, who looked rather pleased. She handed him the same thing that Crabbe and Goyle had passed to the Headmaster, but Malfoy instead pulled out his wand and held the tag up to the girl's neck and tapped it twice. A silver-studded black leather collar formed out from the tag and sealed itself around the girl's neck.

"We'll take care of the Oath in private," the blond aristocrat said out loud.

Dumbledore acknowledged and then held out his hand for another piece of parchment, which Professor McGonagall immediately handed him.

"Now that the agreed upon arrangements have been taken care of, there is the matter of the new wizards of our world receiving their due. I would like to say a few words first off, more of a small lesson really," he addressed the First Year Wizards standing before him.

"You are not being given this responsibility, these slaves, simply because you have the potential to become powerful wizards. You are being given one slave each in order to prepare you for when you graduate Hogwarts and go out into the world _as_ a powerful wizard. Wizards are entitled to much in life, but only if they are strong enough, powerful enough, and _wise_ enough to get it for themselves. A slave is not a right or a privilege. A slave is a responsibility. Do not shirk your responsibilities, or more privileges than owning a slave will be taken from you. Also, it should be said, if your slave misbehaves in anyway, after the first month that will reflect upon you and house points can be taken away, even if it is the slave that has earned the demerit."

"Each of the acquired slaves has already been sorted into their House and will be limited to such unless one of you refuses to take her, or him, for any reason. You will not be given another slave unless you somehow earn that right at some point. We will begin with Gryffindor." He brought up the parchment and began to read from it.

"According to the compatibility spells cast upon the group earlier during your demonstration, these are the best matches of witch to wizard, or slave to wizard. This has already been decided and while you can refuse to take a slave, you cannot demand another in that one's place. Please keep this in mind and let's keep the noise down to a minimum if we can," Dumbledore looked down at them over the rim of his half-moon spectacles.

Looking over to the slave pen, he addressed the witches and few wizards still standing there. "Once I call your name and the name of your assigned master, you will walk over to him, hand him your charm and he will bind you. You will then recite the Oath that Professor Sprout is handing out to you now." A large woman in earthy gardener clothes was passing out small pamphlets, trying not to look into the faces of the young witches and wizards she was helping enslave.

"Let's get the embarrassing bit of business over with first, shall we?" Dumbledore muttered and read the name off the parchment in his hand. "Finnegan, Seamus. Thomas, Dean."

The only Gryffindor boy to not pass muster, his wand had practically exploded in his hand when he cast the spell, sighed yet dutifully stepped forward and approached the tall black boy that had to be Dean Thomas. Seamus handed over the simple iron tag charm and waited expectantly. Dean looked a bit uncomfortable, but looking around he saw that he had no choice, and having watched Malfoy earlier at least knew what to do. He held the charm up to Seamus's throat and tapped it twice with his wand. A simple brown leather collar formed around Seamus's throat and the Irish boy's eyes suddenly dimmed. He then held up the parchment and spoke in a whisper. Though he tried to listen in, Harry could not hear what was being said until the last few words and the charm of his collar flashed a bright light. "So mote it be!"

Before anybody could do anything else, Dumbledore read off the next name. "Brown, Lavender. Weasley, Ronald."

Ron, standing just beside Harry, perked up, surprised to have been picked this early. Nevertheless, he couldn't help but stare when a pretty rosy cheeked blond stepped forward and approached him. The actions repeated themselves, Lavender's collar becoming a simple leather choker much like his brothers' slaves wore. What Harry found odd though, was that even as he stood right next to the two, he could not make out Lavender's whispered words when she recited the Oath off the parchment she was given. He finally decided that it must have had something to do with magic.

"Granger, Hermione," Dumbledore said, and Harry unconsciously tensed, though he couldn't say why. In hindsight, one might think he wanted the girl for himself and was afraid she would go to someone else instead. He would never freely admit that though. "Harry Potter." Harry breathed a sigh of relief without knowing why.

Hermione, on the other hand, was outraged and was considering just staying there until they dragged her kicking and screaming. Instead, she found herself calmly and steadily walking forward even as she fought every step. Subconsciously she realized that either there must have been something in the food, or the Headmaster had put a compulsion charm into his orders to them before.

When the bushy haired girl finally stood before her soon to be master, she found her hand clutching the charm that had magically appeared in her pocket after the magic demonstration, and holding it up for him to take. Tears welled up in her eyes as she was denied even a final protest of what was about to happen.

Harry saw the look in her eyes as he reached up to take the charm from her. He knew that look, better than most. While he could only imagine what she was going through, he understood how she felt. His hand stopped only an inch above the charm. He couldn't do this, he realized. Not like this, not against her will.

"Do you want this?" he whispered to her, trying to keep his voice as soft as possible.

Hermione blinked, surprised. If it weren't for the compulsion on her, she might have dropped the charm and run, but she stayed as still as a statue, just staring at him.

Up at the front, Dumbledore frowned at the delay in the proceedings and took a closer look, as did everyone else in the Hall. There were usually hysterics from the slaves at some point, and occasionally a dispute when the wizard refused to take her, but this was almost unprecedented.

"W-wh-what?" she stuttered.

"Do you want this?" Harry asked again, his hand still held above the charm. "If... if you don't want this, I'll try and change it. I seem to be kind of famous, so maybe I can set an example or something. But... if you do want this, then it's your choice, y'see? You're not being forced, it's your choice."

Hermione blinked again. Her mind was almost numb with shock at everything that had happened tonight so far. She had expected the worst of the worst, being leered at and groped and poked and made to do the most humiliating things, but... Here was her 'master', offering her the choice. Freely become his... his property, or have him refuse and work to abolishing slavery any way he could.

Realistically though, she knew what the options really were. Become the slave of this boy who she _knew_ was a good and decent person and would treat her as humanly as he possibly could... or risk becoming the slave of the worst of the worst. All this went through her mind in the blink of an eye, her choice obvious and simple to her big brain.

"Thank you," Hermione whispered back to him. "I don't think it works like that Harry. If you don't take me, someone worse probably will. Sorry Neville, I don't mean you necessarily," she cast a glance at the wizard standing next to Harry. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "If I have to do this, I appreciate you making it my choice, Harry Potter. More than you'll probably ever know. Yes, if you'll have me, I will be your... slave."

Harry nodded, making sure the look in her eye was genuine, and was pleased to see that the fear was almost all gone, and the anger had been replaced with determination. He picked up her charm in his left hand and held it to the hollow of her neck.

Now that he was holding it, he could feel that it was made out of cold iron, weighing no more than a coin of comparable size. It was shaped like a flattened padlock, with the loop going up and the rectangular tag part being clear and smooth for the moment. He raised his wand and held it above the charm, and paused.

He felt something. He couldn't really describe it in words, it was just a feeling. Seeing how his feelings had served him in the past, even when living with the Dursley's, he went with it. He swished his wand up and made a figure eight with the tip before tapping it against the charm, then raised it and did another figure eight, horizontally this time and tapped it again, and finally did a big circle and tapped it a third time.

The flash of light nearly blinded him and Hermione, even as he held onto the charm as the collar formed. The rest of the hall _was_ blinded.

Feeling something of her own, Hermione began to recite her Oath, having memorized it the moment the piece of paper was in her hands, though she had detested it even as she read it.

Now, however, something was different. And the Oath she recited was _not_ the oath printed on the pamphlet that had been passed out already.

"_I, Hermione Granger to Harry Potter, do freely submit that I am a slave. At his hands I bind my life, my magic, my name, and my soul to him, declaring myself to do with as he pleases. He is Master, and I am slave. He is Owner, and I am owned. He commands, and I obey. He is to be pleased, and I am to please. He is Master, and I am slave. So mote it be!_"

Harry heard the words, knew what they meant and felt the depth to which she had just pledged herself. He felt that he had to say something to this Oath with an Oath of his own.

"_I, Harry Potter to Hermione Granger, do freely accept that I am her Master. I bind your life, your magic, your name and your soul to me, declaring that you are mine. I will protect and guard you so long as you are mine. I am your Master, and you are mine. So mote it be!_"

After the final words were spoken, the flash of light finally died down and everyone could see again. Hermione had a gold chain necklace around her throat, the charm hanging precisely where Harry had held it against the hollow of her collarbone. Of particular note was that there was now an inscribed 'HP' in calligraphy script on the tag portion of the charm.

Hermione blinked and looked surprised. She felt no different, and after the others, she'd expected something to happen, like a tranquilizer effect or some sudden desire to do everything Harry said. Instead she felt the same as ever, although there was an intense feeling buried just beneath the surface. Her eyes widened when she tried to process it and there was no other word for it beyond Loyalty. Loyalty to Harry. In fact, it was no stretch at all to call it slavish devotion to Harry in every definition of the word.

"Erhrm," Dumbledore coughed to silence the murmurs that were already starting throughout the Hall. "Yes, well, if you two wouldn't mind finishing up?" he looked expectantly at them, and Hermione quietly fell into place just behind Harry.

Neville went next and he got the last Gryiffindor girl, Pavarti Patil. Dumbledore then moved onto the Hufflepuffs and the Ravenclaws and then finally the Slytherins. No one else had a reaction as strongly as Harry and Hermione's, and no one else said much afterward.

_To Be Continued..._


	46. X Nin: Naruto

Title: Naruto: X-Gene

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Mutants, X-gene, etc belong to Stan "The Man" Lee and Marvel Comics. Naruto and all related characters belong to Kishimoto and Shonen Jump. Eric Grana is based off of several fictional characters, but for the most part is an original character designed by yours truly. Not making any money off of this, so don't bother making a fuss. Plotline can best be compared to "X-Men: Evolution" but no actual crossover events take place until after mutation comes to light.

Summary: Naruto is among the first mutants of the ninja world, a telepath, the strongest there is. He discovers others like him, other mutants, and eventually unites them into a single team.

Story:

Naruto Uzumaki was not what anyone would call a genius. Far from it, his usual nickname in Konoha's Academy was _Dead Last_. However, neither was he, despite what many said, completely stupid. So when he'd flunked his graduation exam from the Academy, and not an hour after being let out that one of his former teachers, a chuunin named Mizuki, approached him and told him about a "secret exam" that would let him pass automatically, his suspicions were piqued, but he was 12, Mizuki was a teacher, who was he to question the orders of a superior?

However, when he had to sneak into the Hokage Tower of all places and steal a huge scroll with 'Forbidden' written all over and around it, he figured that he was probably being had. If it hadn't been for his headache that he'd been having the whole day, he might have done something reckless and possibly stupid, like go off on his own and keep hidden while he tried to pass the secret exam.

Instead, he hid in the room where the scroll had been kept, opened it and read the first jutsu right there. His headache got worse as he tried to memorize the whole thing. Finally, when he couldn't stand reading it any more, he wrote the Hokage a note, detailing the secret exam, and then went to the secret training grounds Mizuki had told him about and started practicing the _Kage Bunshin no jutsu_.

An hour and a half of constant work later, he finally managed to create the standard (for _Kage Bunshin_) ten solid clones at least twice, which the scroll claimed was the minimum requirements for being a master of the technique. Surprisingly, to Naruto at least, he actually felt his chakra drop pretty low after all that, and was feeling pretty tired by the time his other, and admittedly favorite, teacher showed up.

Iruka Umino knew Naruto personally, having gotten closer to the ninja-hopeful during his years at the Academy and having put up with the young boy's pranks and familiar nature. After all, Iruka had been at least half as bad when he himself had been in the Academy, and he genuinely liked Naruto.

"Naruto!" he called upon landing.

"Ah, Iruka-sensei!" Naruto greeted, sheepishly grinning and scratching the back of his head in embarrassment. "You finally caught me, huh? And I only had enough time to master one jutsu!"

"Huh?" Iruka was confused. First of all, Naruto looked exhausted and filthy, like he'd spent the whole day training himself ragged or something. Secondly, he wasn't nervous or flighty at all, if anything he was acting the same as always. Heck, he was more agitated when Iruka caught him after a prank than he was right now. This wasn't the behavior of someone that had just stolen the forbidden scroll and run away with it. What was going on here?

"Naruto, what do you think you're doing here? You've stolen the Forbidden Scroll! Everyone's been looking for you! You need to explain yourself Naruto!"

"Huh?" the young blond was confused.

"Ah, Iruka," a too familiar voice spoke out from the shadows, "It seems you beat me here. Shame."

"Mizuki?" Iruka said as his fellow chuunin appeared amidst a nearby tree's branches.

"Mizuki-sensei?" Naruto said at the same time, frowning with further confusion, as neither of his teachers were congratulating him on becoming a ninja, so he began to think something else was going on.

Before anything else could be said, Iruka shoved Naruto out of the way right as a hail of kunai hit the chuunin instructor, practically nailing him against the trunk of a tree. Naruto was stunned by this, even moreso as he realized that it was Mizuki who had thrown the kunai. His head started hurting again, and there was something else, a... a whisper, in his mind.

"So that's how it is, huh?" Iruka spoke through pain-clenched teeth, pulling a kunai out of his thigh.

"Naruto, hand over the scroll!" Mizuki called out.

Naruto, frozen with indecision, jumped when Iruka shouted, "Naruto! Don't let him get the scroll, no matter what!"

"Heh, uh, what's going on here, huh?" Naruto looked panicked back and forth between the two older ninja. He held his head with one hand, the headache starting to become distracting, but fear kept his senses sharp, and he really didn't understand what was happening.

"Naruto, that scroll is full of dangerous and forbidden techniques," Iruka gasped, "Mizuki tricked you so he could get his hands on it! You can't let him near it!"

"Heh," Mizuki smirked. "Naruto, Iruka's afraid of you having that scroll and for a very good reason too."

"Mizuki! What are you doing?!" Iruka shouted at him.

"I'll tell you the truth, Naruto," Mizuki said, a cruel smile on his face, "About a law that was created after the Kyuubi Incident twelve years ago. A law that everyone knew, but for you."

"O-only me?" Naruto repeated dully.

"Mizuki! DON'T!" Iruka begged his former friend.

"What law? What is this... this law?" Naruto asked, his headache doubling as the whisper became a voice within his mind. A voice that became real as Mizuki spoke.

"The law was that no one could speak of the fact that Naruto Uzumaki _is_ the Kyuubi!" Mizuki crowed. "You are the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox that attacked our village and killed Iruka's parents! You've been deceived by the entire village this whole time. Didn't you think it odd how everyone seemed to hate you? No one is ever going to recognize a demon like you! Even Iruka hates you! After all, you killed his parents!"

"GAH—DAMNIT!!" Naruto screamed, the pain and restrained anger coming to the fore, and that was nothing compared to the stress his mind was going through. Memories, some long buried, surfaced once again as the truth was revealed and he learned why his life was the way it was.

And suddenly he knew the truth. He could see it plain as day in his mind. The facts, the knowledge, the... the memories? Mizuki was telling the truth about the Hokage's Law concerning Naruto's status as the container of the Kyuubi, but also something else. A... a vague memory of an encounter with a man named Orochimaru, of killing a teammate on a mission, of a hundred other minor sins that lead to this ultimate act of treason against Konoha. And what he was planning on doing next.

At the exact same time, Naruto heard a million other voices, each as clearly and complete as he heard Mizuki's. Iruka's was just as present, but the young boy could also sense the ANBU currently looking for him, the Hokage watching this very encounter from his crystal ball back at the Hokage Tower, and everyone else in Konoha, though most were asleep, he could hear and understand all of them.

What was going on here—MOVE!

Even as Iruka was moving to block Mizuki's attack on Naruto, Naruto himself was already diving forward and rolling under the large shuriken and keeping Iruka from being injured further. He heard/saw/felt the memories flying through Iruka's mind of the Hokage speaking to the chuunin instructor on his behalf. And Iruka's older memories as well, of when he was at the Academy and had lost his parents and played pranks just to get attention. He also experienced the memories of how to properly dodge a shuriken coming down from an above angle and counterattack.

Pulling a kunai from his own pouch, he threw it up, and surprisingly it came real close to scarring Mizuki's face. Regardless, it was enough distraction fro both Naruto and Iruka to disappear into the forest.

Half an hour later, Iruka was chasing Naruto through the forest, trying to get him to hand over the scroll, when Naruto attacked him without warning. It turned out that 'Iruka' was actually Mizuki, and 'Naruto' was really Iruka. Mizuki tried to talk Iruka around, asking him why bother with the monster that killed his parents.

Listening nearby, Naruto heard as Iruka confessed how he was more like Naruto than either of them cared to admit. Though Naruto already 'knew' all this, it was touching nevertheless, and was all the inspiration he needed to turn and face Mizuki and unveil his new technique, the Kage Bunshin no jutsu.

After Iruka gave him his headband, Naruto realized that a lot more had changed than just his status as a ninja. Something had awakened within him during the fight with Mizuki, and it was something that he couldn't share with Iruka, or even the old man Hokage. Not because he didn't trust them, but because he didn't know how to tell them in the first place. Not that they would believe him anyway.

After all, how do you tell someone that you can suddenly read minds, hear people's thoughts, and even, as he discovered later that day, control another person's will?

Naruto Uzumaki had just become the world's strongest psychic.

AN: Basic premise, if you hadn't already caught on at the end there, is a revamped AU crossover between Naruto and the "X-Men" concept, with Naruto as Professor X, sort of. Others, at the moment, include an OC to fill "Magneto's" role, and no, it would NOT be Sasuke. Then the obvious, Haku = Iceman, Temari = Angel, Hinata = Cyclops/Marvel Girl, Tenten = Marvel Girl/Cyclops, and Lee = Beast. As I said, this is a crossover for the X-Men _Concept_, which means the original Team of X-Men; Professor X, Cyclops, Marvel Girl, Angel, Beast, and Iceman. Magneto started off as Professor X's friends, so I'm throwing that character in as Naruto's. Let me know what you think and I'll post another of these 'scenes' that introduce each "character". Thank You For Reading, and Please Review!


	47. Körpertausch04

**Körpertausch 04**

Once they were gone, Buffy sighed and covered his eyes with his hand, his elbows on his knees, supporting his head. Trying desperately not to cry, Buffy surprised himself that he wasn't. Strangely, ever since this switch it seemed as if all of his emotions were locked away, and his aggression was going damn near through the roof. Buffy found it hard to believe that Xander actually had to deal with things like this. After all, he… er, she was _Xander_, and the youth, all through high school was if anything the total opposite of aggressive.

Buffy had been itching to do some pounding, even if he just ended up hurting himself punching a vampire, all day. What was even stranger was that it wasn't a general, mad-at-the-world, raging aggression, but just his normal every day frustrations, magnified to the point where he felt like hitting something by the end of the day.

Buffy had almost calmed himself back down when a noise alerted him that the others were coming back. He looked up, and he froze, his heart stopped, and his mouth drier than the desert.

Xander and Willow had come back in. Willow had taken off her jacket and was wearing a green tank top tucked securely into her hip-hugging jeans, and that was only the beginning of things he noticed about his best friend. Her pale arms were smooth and sleek, not muscular, but nevertheless Buffy found himself wanting to caress and kiss every inch of them. Then there was the gentle curves right around her chest area that Buffy struggled to look away from.

Before his eyes could move much below that, he saw Xander…his former and true body, and his heart stayed stopped for another three beats before started hammering so loud that even without Slayer senses, he heard the blood flow through every artery in his body. Every artery.

Buffy gulped unconsciously, and suddenly felt very uncomfortable in his pants as he stared at the lightly tanned skin. Xander was wearing her favorite leotard that the Slayer sometimes left here at Giles for training purposes. It was purple, with bright blue biker shorts, and molded to her every muscular and smooth curve, leaving her arms, shoulders, calves, and from her neck to her bust line visible with skin.

Buffy tried to gulp or swallow anything in his dry mouth. It was like swallowing sandpaper, but even the discomfort didn't distract his eyes from eyeing up an down both models of female before him.

"Buff? What's up?" Xander asked when she noticed her former body's reactions.

"Buffy?" Willow asked, concerned. She stepped forward and waved her hand in front of Buffy's face. He snapped out of it, but kept looking their bodies up and down.

"Uh, what? Sorry, I, I'm sorry Wills, Xan. I… sorry," he was blushing and trying to look anywhere but at them, but he kept glancing back, almost like he had no control whatsoever.

"Buff, what's the matter? You're acting like I usually do whenever I see… you…" Xander trailed off as dawning understanding struck her. Slowly, she looked down at her outfit, and vaguely recalled memories of seeing Buffy in the same, or similar outfits. As usual whenever thinking of females of Buffy's caliber, Xander immediately got aroused, only this time the arousal hit him harder and in very much so a different fashion.

"Uh, Wills, would you mind staying with Buff while Giles and I go… train," Xander trailed off as he quickly went to Giles back yard.

Buffy's eyes unwillingly followed the blonde girl's every step and move of her outlined ass. The moment that Xander was out of sight, Buffy snapped out of whatever trance he was in, shaking his head vigorously.

"Oh gawd Wills, what the hell is the matter with me?" Buffy sobbed. Coming from Xander's voice it was not a pleasant sound.

"Buffy? What-what's wrong?" Willow asked.

Buffy shook his head for another minute, trying to clear his mind of the images that were still bouncing around up there, as well as calm down enough to alleviate his uncomfortableness. "Uh… um, n-nothing Will… n-n-nu-nuthin'. Yeah… nothing," the former Slayer stuttered, red-faced and looking away from his best friend. The tears that had fallen seemed to disappear into vapor faster than they had appeared and Buffy found himself dealing with his emotions, those not inspired by male hormones that is, better than he ever had before.

"Uh-uh!" Willow suddenly exclaimed, startling the dark haired man. "I recognize that. Xander used to do it all the time when we were kids, he still does it some times! You're trying to repress your emotions Buffy. Don't. I can't say what it's done to Xander, but I know that I don't want that to happen to you Buffy."

Buffy looked at his best friend confusedly for several moments before he finally pieced together what Willow was saying. The flush in his cheeks seemed to get even darker. "Uh, I, uh, I'm not sure what all the hell just happened here Willow. It… it's like… like I wasn't even in control, the body, _this_ body was doing everything and I was just along for the ride. From the repressing my emotions to… to…" Buffy stopped speaking.

"To what Buffy?" Willow asked, inching closer to her misplaced female friend. When Buffy still didn't answer right away, Willow placed a gentle hand on her friends strong, broad shoulder. Buffy unconsciously shivered as a wave of arousal and pleasant "goose-pimple-ness" spread throughout his body at the simple touch.

Willow frowned, worried that something was really, dangerously wrong here, but when Buffy turned to face her, she saw his eyes begin an all-too-familiar pattern that she had received many times since going to college. It was the 'check-out' look that guys always gave to every piece of ass they thought was too fine for their own good. At least that was Willow's opinion in the aftermath of Oz's leaving and being called several names by the lewder people on campus.

That was when it struck her, like a lightning bolt between the eyes. "Oh. My. Goddess." Willow's eyes went almost cartoon wide as her entire body stiffened up, and she numbly retracted her hand like it had been burned, and then quickly scooted back those inches she had moved forward before, along with several other.

"Wills… Willow, I…" Buffy was now terrified that he was scaring his best friend, the last person on earth he ever wanted to be afraid of him.

Willow saw that too-genuine fear in Xander's eyes that she knew was entirely different from the mild panicking he did whenever in trouble, and it immediately broke through whatever prejudice-based thoughts that were clouding her mind and immediately recovered those lost inches. She didn't touch him again however.

"No, Buffy, I, it's all right, I, you just startled me, that's all," Willow hastily explained, trying to calm her friend down. "But, its just that you've never…"

"That's what I was telling you!" Buffy suddenly exclaimed. "It's not me! It's this body!" he gestured down at himself. Willow blushed as she glanced at his crotch, unable to help herself. "I was just along for the ride! I couldn't even stop it Willow, and believe me, I wanted to! If all guys are like this, it makes me wonder how gay, gay people are!"

"Being gay is not genetic Buffy, it's a social choice, and everybody knows that. Anybody or anything that says differently is either stupid or too desperate for words," Willow immediately responded. "But… uh, for guys, the desire to, uhm, procreate. _That's_ genetic and I don't think there is a person alive that can deny that."

"Well…" Buffy started to say.

"But this is Xander's body Buffy," Willow added. "He's not kidding when he said that looking at linoleum turns him on. Not to mention, he _has_ filled out nicely since starting working at the construction company…" Willow trailed off, now letting her own eyes do the 'check out' look.

"Willow!" Buffy squeaked.

The redhead shook herself and smiled at Buffy, trying to calm him down.

"This is actually a fascinating discovery. I've got to start that initial write-up so I can study this more closely," she said suddenly and intensely. Buffy knew that voice for the truth, Willow had just found or done something rather disturbing to her eyes and was now throwing herself head-long into something to do everything in the world to keep her distracted from thinking on it longer than she already had.

"Uh… ok," Buffy replied after Willow had already left the couch for her previously abandoned notebook. After a few minutes of tense silence, at least on Buffy's end, he stood up and announced, "Uh, Wills I'm going to go out back with Xand and Giles, see if I… well I'll just be out there." And he went.

Buffy wasn't quite sure what he expected when he got to the back yard, which actually was where the former Slayer had had several training sessions with the Watcher, but after the slight revelation with Willow, he wasn't really concerned too badly over it.

To find Xander in Buffy's favorite leotard, already with a light sweat soaking through it, moving through one of the most basic and first forms that he had learned wasn't really shocking. It was drool-worthy. And to Buffy, _that_ was what was shocking.

Remembering all the times the switched Slayer had actually drooled, or close enough to, and how she had managed to control herself… some of those times, and maintain control over her hormones, Buffy now exerted the same force of will on his new male hormones.

It helped to get angry. Distracted him from his former body's movements.

"Giles, I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to work out too. Least I can do is get Xander's body in decent enough shape to take out a newbie vamp," Buffy explained as he removed the sweater he wore, now wearing nothing but shoes, denim jeans, and a white tank top.

Buffy casually noted that Xander's arms were kinda scraggly, despite working in construction for over a month now. Planning on changing that, Buffy started with the normal routine he'd gone through when he was still the Slayer, starting with stretching unfamiliar muscles and learning several new words for pain, many that were derivatives of "Ow."

"Buffy I thought I said…" Giles started, as Xander was just finishing up several push-ups.

"I _know_ what you _said_ Giles!" Buffy snapped, the brisk tone in the male voice silencing the back yard for several moments. "I also remember the points that you, Xander, and the damned demon that did this to us made. The least I can do is get Xander's body in a decent amount of shape while I'm in it until we're switched back."

Silence, broken only by the grunts of the two training youths, remained in the backyard for the duration of the time the three of them were back there. Right now it was just about training the both of them in the ways their new bodies worked, getting them used to their skin so to speak.

Once Giles was sure that they were "comfortable" enough, he promised to start on the normal martial arts training, which Buffy mostly learned from Merrick. By the time they had finished, it was nearing sunset, but Giles still forbid them from going on patrol.

Reluctantly, they agreed, Xander going straight back to the dorms with Willow, while Buffy went in to shower.


	48. Quantum Possibilities: Twins

QUANTUM: Possibilities

Title: QUANTUM: Possibilities

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Buffy and all related characters belong to and were created by Joss Whedon. The concept of multiple realities however is public knowledge and scientific theory at BEST. In fact, not even theory as no evidence YET exists to prove or disprove. Any other characters, while based on other fictions or real people, are not copied from said other fictions or the actual real people. They are fictional representations of my own imagination and I stand to make no profit of my own from this fic and if any, people who own or are represented in this fiction should be honored, not offended. If you are, I'll change it, just contact me with either critique or criticism at .. Also, so many people have rewritten this opening scene for so many fanfics, I DON'T CARE IF ITS BEEN USED BEFORE, I WROTE/DESRCIBED IT THIS WAY, BUT JOSS WHEDON OR WHOEVER ACTUALLY WROTE THE SCENE!

Spoilers for "The Gift". And lots of others, I'm not naming them all. Seasons 1-6. And maybe a few books.

Also to note, this in itself is an alternate universe, as if it were the TV verse, then I'd be getting sued for copyright infringement. Timeline: Right after Buffy jumped into the portal the Key opened. Rather than fall through it and to her death however, Buffy fell into the portal as though it were an actual portal. But it still closed. Before this point, yes, identical to the TV verse.

Summary: Buffy, after sacrificing herself to save all, finds out about all the different possibilities her life could have had, if she had only made a few different choices, or if others had.

'_Italics'_ are thoughts.

"Quotes" are speech.

Less and Greater signs are telepathy.

[Brackets] are locations, aka universes.

* * *

[The Untouched Universe]

The next day

1630 Revello Drive

"_Buffy's home"_

"OK, so what are we gonna call you?" the "local" Buffy asked her duplicate as she walked around with warm hot chocolate to sit across from said duplicate at the dining room table. Dawn sat at her usual place, Willow and Xander also sat at the table, while Giles and Anya stood.

"My name is Buffy," Buffy said, almost as though saying "Duh!"

"Yeah, and in case you hadn't noticed," Buffy01 said sarcastically, "so is mine. Now seriously, what are we gonna call you, cause the two of us being in the same room is gonna get confusing pretty quickly."

Buffy frowned at the logic and nodded. "Well… we call the only other thing that looks like us 'Buffy_bot_', so why can't I just be Buffy2?" At the confused faces, and 'Are you stupid?' look on Dawn's, she added, "As in the numeral." That cleared up the confusion.

"Well… I suppose that could work. At least until we figure out a way to get you home anyway. Any clues on how to start on that Will?" Buffy01 asked.

"I've been thinking about that all night actually," Willow answered, easily going into "science mode". "After sending the troll guy out, it will be pretty easy to _send_ her… uh, you," she made sure to include Buffy2 in the conversation, "out of this dimension. The problem is that I had a very specific dimension set in mind when I sent the troll. Before we try any 'sending' we have to find Buffy2's home dimension and make extra sure before even trying anything. Otherwise… we might end up sending you to the hell dimension the portal _would_ have taken you to."

"Speaking of that, Anya?" Buffy2 asked the ex-demon. The dark haired version of Xander's fiancé stood up from the wall and looked expectantly at the visiting Slayer. "If Glory was a god, and she came from a single hell dimension… how could there be _two_ Glorys? One in my dimension, and the one we killed last night?"

Anya opened her mouth to answer, and then a confused air entered her eyes and she snapped it shut. After a few more minute's silence she finally answered with, "I-I don't know. I suppose the same thing that happened with me. There are always more universes out there than just the ones we are aware of. I mean, I've actually met, when I was still a demon, some of my alternates. Not often, but sometimes when you're traveling in demonic circles stuff like that happens. We didn't get together that often, but it was always interesting when it did. Like, there are probably a few universes where I never became a demon at all… and then ones where I still am."

"An…" Xander spoke up, but she interrupted him by smiling and sliding into his lap and kissing him full on the lips. "But I wouldn't change any of the choices I've made. I like the way things have turned out here."

"Good," Xander answered, kissing her back.

Buffy smiled at them and then shared a look with her counterpart. "They make a great couple, don't they?"

Buffy01 smiled and nodded back. "Why do you think I beat up the troll?" They both smiled brightly as the humor played itself out in their heads, and then suddenly their faces fell as the same thought struck both of them at the same time. _Why_ they had beat up the troll with such passion.

"Riley," they whispered in unison. Dawn groaned and rolled her eyes. That brought the Slayers out of the brief depression bout quickly.

"All right, what about… B?" Buffy01 suggested, trying to get a subject change going.

The look of horror that crossed Buffy's face was completely unexpected by any of them. "Please, do _not_ start copying Faith with me!" Buffy exclaimed.

Everyone in the room, save the one that had spoken, looked at each other, confused. "Who?" Buffy01 finally asked.

Buffy blinked. She never considered that anything other than the recent past had differed from the world she lived on at the moment and her own world. "You know, Faith. Second Slayer, brunette with a Boston accent, likes to talk about sex all the time, gives everybody single letter nicknames? Went evil with the Mayor after killing a man?" At the continued looks of confusion and non-acquiescence she added looking at the blonde across from her, "Switched bodies with us after she woke up from the coma I put her in?"

Buffy01 frowned and shook her head. "Uh… isn't Kendra the second Slayer though?"

Buffy gave her an incredulous look, which was quickly switched with a guilty one as she answered, "Kendra was killed by Drusilla during the whole… Acathla thing." Buffy01's eyes blinked, glazed over in memory, before taking on a sad tint and sighed as she remembered the bad memories.

"Kendra wasn't here during then," Willow answered, pointing out the difference.

"But…" Buffy looked to Giles.

The Watcher noticed the look and took a deep breath. "Kendra… is dead. She died… three years ago. Shortly after the… Acathla incident. Another Slayer was called. She and her Watcher are doing quite well last I heard."

"But… Kakistos…?" Buffy asked.

Giles looked at her, surprised. "How did you know about that monster?" he asked.

"Faith and I took him on… after she… ran away from him… after he… killed her Watcher…" suddenly all the pieces were coming together. Buffy closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Faith… didn't make it past Kakistos, did she?"

There was a tense silence in the room until finally Giles was forced to answer, by his own conscience. "No. It was a long battle, but… the Slayer from Boston…"

"Faith," Buffy immediately inserted, despite her dislike of her fellow Slayer, she felt that she needed to be remembered by name.

"Faith," Giles acquiesced, "Managed to destroy Kakistos… by dragging him into a vat of molten steel. Another Slayer was called after her. I haven't heard her name, only brief reports from the Council that she is still active and she and her Watcher are traveling abroad."

A solitary tear fell down Buffy's face as she mourned a Slayer that only she had known. Even Buffy01 felt a pang of guilt and grief over the passing of her sisters. She had known about Kendra's death, Giles had told her after she came back from her… running away, after she had sent Angel to Hell.

"So… how can we find this Buffy's home dimension?" Anya suddenly spoke up, sensing the desperate need of a subject change. "I mean, speaking from experience, there are… infinite alternate universes out there. And Willow just said we have to be _very_ sure."

"Can't we just find out her vibrational sequence and match it up with the first universe that matches it exactly?" Xander asked. Everyone looked at him strangely. Grinning goofily, he breathed out a laugh and excused, "I heard it on Star Trek."

"Really gotta start watching that show more," Buffy sighed to herself. Buffy01 looked at her, surprised. "What?" Buffy asked when she noticed the look.

"_You_ watched Star Trek?"

Shrugging sheepishly, "Well, other than the times that Xander stuck us down to watch Star Trek marathons on Slayer-free weekends in High School, Mom was also a closet Trekkie. Remember?"

Buffy01 blinked and then blushed as she remembered the specific thing her double was talking about. "OK, good point. But I never liked watching it!"

"Yeah well, now that I'm in what might as well be an episode of it, I see the need in watching it, if only for the survival tips." Buffy bit out. Again her double had to agree with the truth of the statement.

"Could always get the complete series on DVD if your serious about that Buff… uh, 2," Xander added when both Buffys looked his way. Buffy2, as she was being called, just grinned at her friend, that is to say if _he_ was really her friend. His double was _her_ friend, but he was her double's friend, and… Buffy shook her head, stopping the line of thought before she gave herself a nosebleed.

"Look, it's obvious that a lot of things are going to be different from my past and your alls, but is it really important for us to go into detail over every little thing? I mean, are we going to end up spending an hour talking about how long it took me to pick out the dress I wore the night I burned down the gym?" Buffy asked sarcastically.

"About two hours," Buffy01 answered automatically. Buffy looked at her sharply and shot back, "Try 2 weeks! I had been eyeing that dress since the night I rescued Pike."

"You mean Mom actually let you buy that fluffy white one?" Buffy01 asked, shocked.

Dawn smiled as she explained, "Money was tight, so Mom wouldn't give Buffy the money she wanted for the dress, told her to save her allowance if she wanted it so bad. Ended up getting a slutty dress instead at the cheap rack on the other side of the mall."

Buffy looked back at her double, "You mean you _didn't_ save up for it? I even bribed Dawn with doing her chores for a week if she gave me some of _her_ savings. No way was I gonna let Merrick's death ruin the Spring Fling for me!"

"And get stuck doing the brat's chores?!" Buffy01 repeated, aghast. "Besides, I would've had to have torn that frilly thing when the vampires came by."

Suddenly Buffy blushed deeply. Buffy01 caught it and snapped, "That dress cost over two hundred dollars!" Buffy just shrugged. "Wouldn't fit us now anyway."

"Yeah, like you've done a lot of "growing"," Dawn remarked.

"DAWN!" both shouted, glaring at the younger Summers.

Dawn almost wilted under the dual effects of her sister ragging on her in full stereo.

"Willow, please?" Giles almost begged.

The redheaded mage frowned and shrugged, suddenly once again the center of attention. "I'm sorry, but its too dangerous to just *try* without knowing a lot more. And-and I'm kinda new to this level of power. I mean, it just kinda… occurred to me to enter Buffy's mind. And yeah most of the other stuff were spells, but I have no idea what…"

"We could do a locator spell," Tara said as she entered the room. "Sorry I'm late everyone," she said only somewhat timidly before sliding onto Willow's lap as Anya had done to Xander's.

"Locator spell wouldn't work baby," Willow said regretfully after greeting her lover with a kiss. "Alternate reality. Same space, same place, different vibration slash existence, like Xander said."

"Well… what about a viewing spell? That might allow us to _see_ into Buffy's home universe… wouldn't it?" Tara asked.

Buffy shook her head as she stared at the wonder that was Tara Maclay. The Tara that she knew was **never** this bold and confident. She almost seemed like a blonde, more vanilla, version of Cordelia, even in the way she dressed. _Especially_ in the way she dressed, Buffy thought as she noticed the skimpy halter top and black skirt that Tara was wearing.

Willow on the other hand seemed to be as introverted as she was in high school. _'Thought I got her out of that phase with High School,'_ Buffy thought with a frown.

"A viewing spell?" Anya at first seemed to scoff the idea, and then she suddenly turned inward on her thoughts, "That…that…_might_ actually work. Of course we'll have to go through dimensions one at a time until we find the universe that Buffy would identify as her own."

Willow was even more thoughtful until she suddenly brightened and kissed Tara on the cheek. "Baby you're brilliant!" she exclaimed. "A viewing spell would be perfect. And we could learn enough to see whether it's safe enough to send anyone. But Anya's right, we'll have to start looking as soon as possible and start working in the right direction."

"What do you need Willow? To perform the viewing spell?" Giles asked.

Willow chewed her bottom lip for a moment, her eyes rolled downwards in thought. "Well, a reflective surface for starters. And some serious supply of…" The rest of the conversation was tuned out as Giles, Willow, Tara, and Anya began discussing what would be needed for Willow to cast the spell.

The mage did think it prudent to mention that once she cast the spell on a specific object, they were already planning on a mirror in the Magic Box, one only had to say the name of a previously viewed object to find and see it once again instantly. As the talk of magics and ingredient gathering went on, the Buffys, Xander and Dawn silently excused themselves to the Summers back yard.

"Never seen that before. I thought Willow and Anya hated each other?" Buffy asked the group that was before her.

Xander smiled and simply said, "Olag."

That did indeed answer Buffy's question and she nodded.

"So… what am I like in your world?" Dawn asked, a quirky smile on her face.

Buffy smirked back at the younger Summers and answered, "As annoying as ever, not to mention still the biggest pain in my butt. But… she's still my sister. I thought I was giving my life for her. Some twist huh?" Buffy sighed as an uncomfortable silence settled in.

Dawn, about to protest over the first half of Buffy's answer, held back when she noticed the look on her face. "Are… are you all right?" she asked.

Tears began to flow down Buffy's cheeks as she thought over and over the night that she had left her home universe, the night of the final battle with Glory. She sniffled and wiped her eyes, but the tears wouldn't stop. "It's just… I… I may never see my sister, _my_ sister ever again. Or _my_ friends or… or my home. And what's worse is that when I saw that it had to be either Dawn or me… I _wanted_ to die. I can't believe that I was so stupid to let that damn spirit trick me like that. Do you have _any_ idea what that's like? _Wanting_ to die?" Buffy asked her double, the crying affecting her voice now.

Buffy01 was only silent as she stared at her double. "No, of course you don't, you didn't go out to the desert because you were questioning your ability to love, you probably didn't even go to the door when Mom's zombie showed up at it, did you?"

All three of them looked confused for a second until Dawn winced. She turned to the others and explained, "I asked Willow and Tara if there was a way to bring back the dead," she turned to the person she knew as Buffy2, "They talked me out of it. What-what happened?"

"Dawn cast a spell… we hashed it out when I found out what she'd done… and then she destroyed the spell just before I opened the door." Buffy wailed/answered.

"Oh my god," Buffy01 whispered in shock.

Xander couldn't stand the sight of it anymore. He walked forward and just embraced the dimension-lost Slayer. She embraced him right back as though he might disappear right from under his touch and started _really_ crying. "Why?" she raged, holding the White Knight tight, "_Why_ didn't I just die?!"

Buffy01 winced and Dawn gasped in shock. She had _never_ heard her sister talk like that before, and to hear it from an alternate possibility of said sister, made Dawn reconsider of lot of things, her own behavior key in that. The other Buffy, however, was having other thoughts at the moment.

This other version of her had basically had it put in her head that she was supposed to die. Whether by Glory, or this spirit she talked about, or maybe even her friends, the doubles of her own Scooby Gang. She knew, given the choice of Dawn or the end of the world, most of them, save Xander and Willow, would choose Dawn. And the rest of them would not hesitate for a second to let her know that. At the first chance of another choice, even if it had been her own life, Buffy knew she would've taken it as well. That she would be as willing to kill… no, sacrifice herself as easily as this alternate had already, was quite a revelation to her. She took a shuddering breath as what it meant became clear to her.

Dawn stepped forward and embraced the lost Buffy from the side whispering, "Oh Buffy, it's going to be ok. It's going to be ok."

Buffy01, however, held back, lost in her own introspection before she finally had to ask, "Would you do it again?"

That broke the group hug apart somewhat as all three stared at her. Knowing what that meant, Buffy01 rephrased the question, "I mean, if the same choice came up, Dawn or the world, and your death meant both could live, even if it was say _this_ world and _my_ Dawn, or some other Dawn or some other world… would you do it again? Sacrifice yourself? Even if all you'd be doing is saving some people not your own, or a person that you have no relation to?"

Buffy2 only looked over at Buffy01's sister, smiled and then said back to her double, "Without hesitation."

"Why?"

That stumped the visitor from another dimension. "Huh?" she managed, the tears beginning to slow.

"Why?" Buffy01 repeated. "I'm not even sure if _I_ could do that. For my world, and _my_ sister, yes, I would. But… I couldn't for another world, a Dawn, a person that I wasn't even "mentally" related to. I mean, are you _so_ anxious to kill yourself that you'll take the first opportunity to martyr yourself?"

At the shocked looks she received, Buffy01 only got more motivated in what she was saying. "Yeah, I know you were basically brainwashed by this desert spirit or whatever the hell it was, into thinking that your, _our_ destiny is to die, but think again! My… _our_ friends have risked _everything_ to ensure that we have as much chance of survival as any of them do. Xander, Giles, even Anya could all die with a 50% more chance as we could, because we're actually stronger than all of them put together! So why are you so convinced that you will be, or will have to be the first one to die, huh? Yeah, so we're Slayers, deal with it. All that means, simply, is that we're a weapon that does the same thing that Xander and every one of our other friends _chooses_ to do."

"But Giles…" Buffy2 tried to protest. Buffy01 snorted.

"After Giles was fired from the Council, he could have just gone home and tried to put the life he had before being a Watcher back together. He could have moved to New York or Los Angeles, just to get away from the Hellmouth. Or he could have gone out and gotten himself turned. Giles _chose_ to stay beside me as my Watcher, and he probably did the same for you on your world. And Xander… Xander is the one you consider 'normal guy' right? The only person who still has a chance at a normal life, despite being a part of the Scooby Gang?" Buffy2 ducked her head, blushing, as the man being spoken of was standing right next to her. "Xander has saved my ass more times than I care to count, and I guarantee you that at least half of those same events happened on your world. What makes us the greatest Slayer in the past century is not our kill ratio, or how many Armageddon's we've stopped, or even which big bads we've actually taken out. It's our friends. The Scooby Gang is what makes us the greatest Slayer ever. It took me a long time to figure that out, but I did, and I haven't stopped thanking each of my friends ever since."

Uncomfortable silence moved back into the back yard as Buffy's words settled in and the lost Slayer realized how much absolute truth was in those words.

"OK, maybe now would be a good time to go over the details of differences," Buffy2 said in a mild effort to save face, and also because she wanted to know exactly where this revelation about her friends had come from and why she hadn't experienced it as well.

TBC...?


	49. YAHF: Slayer Rangers

Title: Slayer Rangers: A Beginning  
Author(s): Joshua & Troy Guffey  
Summary: Xander & 5 others wear matching hero costumes for Ethan's Halloween spell.  
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters. Troy Guffey has kind of been absent (or changed his penname) for a while now, and we only ever posted this collaboration on one site. We had been working on a sequel to this, but again, Troy's been kind of absent, so I figured I'd put this in my 'Fantasies' and see if anybody else wants to help in writing the sequel one day. Contact me at ..

October 30, 1997  
Sunnydale High School

Buffy, Willow, Xander and Amy were walking down the hall towards their lockers when they saw a sight fit to freeze the most toughened of warriors: Principal Snyder at a table set up in the hallway. A sign taped to the table read: Halloween Safety Program. Snyder abruptly reached out and grabbed a passing girl, pulling her towards the table.

"Hey!" she protested.

Snyder picked one of the clipboards off the table and pushed it at her, along with a pen. "You're volunteering."

"But I have to get to class," she protested again.

Snyder just shrugged. The quartet walked quietly behind Snyder trying not to attract his notice.

Their lockers were uncomfortably close to the Volunteer Table. Cordelia was at her locker fairly close. She looked up at them for a moment, and then continued her task in her locker.

Willow said, "Snyder must be in charge of the volunteer safety program for Halloween this year." She began opening her locker.

Xander said, "Note his interesting take on the volunteer concept."

Buffy asked, "What's the deal?"

Cordelia finished her tasks and headed their way in the crowded hallway.

Xander said, "Oh, a bunch of little kids need people to take them trick-or-treating. Sign up and get your own pack of sugar-hyped little runts for the night."

Buffy shuddered. "Yikes. I'll stick to vampires."

There was a 7-way collision as Daniel "Oz" Osborne attempted to pass through without getting tapped for the "volunteer" program. Unfortunately he had zigged when Snyder had zagged.

Snyder turned around to see who had bumped into him. He took in Oz's currently purple hair, and noticed Buffy as well.

Snyder gloated, "Miss Summers. Just the juvenile delinquent I've been looking for."

Buffy gulped, and then squeaked, "Principal Snyder!"

Snyder said, "Halloween must be a big night for you. Tossing eggs, keying cars, bobbing for apples, one pathetic cry for help after another. Well, not this year, missy. And look, I have only six slots left and there are six of you. How convenient. Sign." He pushed a clipboard and pen at Buffy.

"But I can't…" came an unexpected chorus from the six students.

"My, what synchronization. Since it seems you all work so well together, why don't you all show up wearing matching costumes, too?" Snyder's tone allowed no argument.

Buffy gave up and signed the clipboard, then passed it along. Each of the six did the same unhappily.

Snyder took the clipboard. "The program starts at four, the children have to be back by six. Now, get to class." He stalked off back to the table and began collecting all the other clipboards and things.

"Ugh!" Cordelia protested as they all walked away towards the lounge, unconsciously staying in the group. "I can't believe this! I was going to the party at the Bronze on Halloween night, and I already had this great cat costume picked out at Party Town! I wanted that time to get ready."

"I'm in the band playing the party at the Bronze," Oz pointed out, "But that's not till later."

"I'm free," Amy said.

They had reached the lounge area. Buffy realized the other three needed to get to class. "Can you meet us in the Library right after school?" she asked.

Amy, Cordelia, and Oz nodded and went off their separate ways.

"This is so unfair! Halloween was supposed to be my night off!" Buffy protested.

Xander complained, "I can't believe this. We have to get dressed up and the whole deal?"

Willow answered, "Snyder said matching costumes were mandatory."

Buffy complained, "Great. I was gonna stay in and veg. The one night a year things are supposed to be quiet for me."

Xander inquired, "Halloween quiet? Oh, I figured it'd be a big old vamp scare-a-palooza."

Buffy said, "Not according to Giles. He swears that tomorrow night is, like, dead for the undead. They stay in."

Xander smiled. "Those wacky vampires! That's why I love 'em! They just keep you guessing!"

_Sunnydale High school Library_

Buffy, Willow, and Xander quickly made their way to the Library as soon as their last classes were ended.

"Giles, you have to do something!" Buffy complained. Willow and Xander flopped down at the table and slumped in their chairs.

"About what?" her Watcher asked.

"That runty troll Snyder roped us into this stupid Halloween Safety Program! We have to escort snotty-nosed sugar-hyped rug-rats and yard apes around on the one day you said I could be sure to have off," sulked Buffy.

The Watcher gave a sympathetic shake of his head. "While I sympathize with you, I'm afraid I can do nothing to help. It's only for a couple of hours, correct? You could consider it part of your Slayer duty to protect the helpless, if that helps."

"Not a bit." Buffy went over to the table and slumped into a seat.

"So, what are you doing, just sitting here?" Giles asked.

"We weren't the only ones Snyder grabbed. He assigned us, Cordelia, Amy, and Oz to wear matching costumes because he caught us at the same time and we dared to protest," answered Willow.

"I see," said Giles. He went back into his office and resumed his work.

Cordelia and Amy arrived within the next couple of minutes, followed almost immediately by Oz. They all copied the three already there and took seats at the table. There was an uncomfortable silence for a bit.

Cordelia finally tired of the silence. "So, I'm stuck with matching costumes with you losers. So, how do you feel about going as cats to match me?"

Xander said, "I think that would cost far too much and please Snyder way too much. So, I think that's a 'no'."

There was another silence for a short while.

Amy spoke up. "You know, just to spite Snyder we should spend as little on costumes and as little costume as we can. I'm a little short on cash anyway."

There was a round of approval at this idea.

"So, let's go to Party Town and see what else they've got." said Cordelia.

"Wait, there's a new shop opening up and they're having a grand opening sale," volunteered Willow. "That would probably be the best place to start, if we want to get it cheapest."

Cordelia thought it over for a moment, and then agreed. "So how do you want to get over there? I can't fit all six of us in my car and I'm sure not going to go over there and wait on you guys."

"I've got my van, but it's kind of full of band gear at the moment. I've only got two seats open," said Oz.

"Well, I'm willing to give three of you a ride. Who's going with who?" asked Cordelia.

"Why don't we girls go in your car and the guys can follow in the van. Willow may know where this place is, I don't." said Buffy.

"Fine by me." Said Cordelia.

"Bye, Giles. See you later." called Buffy as they all got up from the tables and headed out of the library.

_Ethan's Costume Shop_

Half an hour later, the six were standing in the middle of a surprisingly busy shop, mostly just looking over the options without moving.

"Wow," Amy commented, looking around. "Who would have thought Halloween would be so busy on the Hellmouth?"

"I guess it's the fact that these things are so cheap that whoever owns this place is practically giving all this stuff away," Cordelia snidely replied. "Party Town has a much, much better selection. Not to mention their merchandise is of a higher quality."

"Yeah, but their cheapest costume costs at least a hundred bucks," Buffy logically shot down. "All right, we need ideas here people. Six matching costumes. And Halloween is tomorrow so there's no coming back later."

Xander immediately was drawn to a rack where the adult sized costumes were. On one entire rack were a number of costumes, each with the same, large logo on their tags. "It's just too novel to resist!" he called when he caught the looks every one of the others shot him.

"NO!" all of them, even Oz, shouted.

Then the quiet one put logic to their denial in saying, "Besides, there are six of us, and only five in the Scooby Gang. And there isn't a Scrappy Doo." Xander pouted, but agreed that going, as 'Mystery Inc.' was not a go.

"Besides, I hate wearing that tacky color of purple and…" Buffy started to say when she caught sight of something in the back, and slowly gravitated towards it.

Cordelia bristled slightly as she snapped, "Hey! If anyone, _I_ would wear the Daphne costume, and…hey!" she shouted when everyone moved off after Buffy.

"I'm sorry," Buffy apologized, briefly looking back but then returned to the costume that had caught her eye. It was a red and pink noblewoman's dress, with white ruffles along the sleeves and low V-neck collar. "But… look at this…"

"It's amazing," Willow said, Amy nodding her head in agreement.

"Eh, too bulky," Xander grunted, "I prefer my women in spandex." He received a triple 'Girl Death Glare' as reward.

Suddenly the apparent shopkeeper, a tall man with grayish black hair in his mid-forties appeared around the corner and noticed the group, and Buffy's interest in the costume. "Please, let me," he said as he takes the dress off the wire-frame mannequin holding it.

"Oh…I-it's, uh…" she can't seem to form a complete sentence as Ethan holds the costume up in front of her, looking at a mirror before them.

"Magnificent," he finished her sentence, "Yes, I know. There." He pauses as everyone takes in the image of Buffy in the costume being reflected in the mirror. "My. Meet the hidden Princess. I think we've found a match, don't you?"

Buffy jumps, startled out of her daydream, recalling seeing a picture of a woman in a dress just like this in one of the Watcher's Diaries, ironically the one about Angelus. "Oh! I, uh, I-I'm sorry, but…" she never finished as Cordelia finally caught up and snorted at the scene.

"_Matching_ costumes!" she huffed and then turned around to go back to another part of the shop.

Buffy was cursing the universe for ever allowing the birth of a creature like Cordelia, but smiled apologetically at Ethan and said, "Sorry. I can't. We all have to get costumes that go together or something. I think my very future depends on it actually. Thanks for the preview though. Maybe I'll get it for next year." Then she turned around with all the others to spread out and try and find something else.

Ethan just stood there for a moment; glowering at the girl he knew was the Slayer. If only he could have convinced her of this particular costume…

******

Xander had initially planned on getting some Army fatigues at the local Army Surplus store, and then getting a toy gun or something else here to complete the costume, maybe even get some fake dog tags. He did notice there was a small stand full of them on the front counter, but there would be no way he could convince all of the others to go as some kind of militia or Special Ops military group. Especially not Cordelia.

He really couldn't understand that girl. He had begun to see there was something more than the surface layer that had caused Willow and him to form the "We Hate Cordelia Club." Perhaps she had grown out of it. Or perhaps those hidden depths had been there all along, but hidden by the snobbish socialite surface that would have made Gandhi contemplate violence.

He quickly moved on, moving closer to the Kids section, where most of the crowd was. He was amazed by the number of demon-like masks and so forth on other costumes, but what really surprised him was a rack solely dedicated to Power Ranger Villains. But without it's counterpart.

He noticed Willow nearby, who just glancing at the rack of half-empty Putty costumes, he knew had counted and calculated how many were there and how many had already been sold. He loved having a super smart friend.

Just then, as he turned away from the PR Villain rack, inspiration struck him. Directly in his line of sight, under the glass countertop that held up the register, were a number of silver-lined watch-like bracelets. They were further diversified by a different base color between the silver lining on each band part of the bracelets. And each was only $10.00 apiece.

Smiling, Xander began to strategize on how to convince the others of this, as well as anticipating their counter arguments, including Oz's undoubted pointing out of the difference in number of correct genders. He smiled further.

"Guys!" he called everyone together, then stepped forward to the glass case. It didn't take him long to figure out how to open it to get at the contents, as it wasn't locked. He pulled out one of each color band bracelet, except green, and set them all atop the counter. He turned to showcase his decision.

"What about it?" he asked.

"About what, dork head?" Cordelia scathingly demanded.

"Well, I couldn't help but notice that there is a lack of Power Ranger costumes. Sure, there are the Villains and Putty costumes that are already all off the shelf, but not Power Ranger. These…are the Wrist Communicators the Power Rangers have when in civilian dress. We could go as the civilian Power Rangers. Are you getting this?" he asked just to twist Cordelia's chain, as though she were deaf or dumb about the concept.

She glared at him and opened her mouth with a no doubt further scathing remark, but he beat her to the punch with saying, "You get to be the Pink Ranger."

She blinked, and shut her mouth, and then with a shrug, she said, "OK."

Everyone, except Xander, turned to stare in shock at her, then they all looked back at Xander and the props. Oz frowned and pointed out, as Xander had expected him to, "Doesn't even out man. The Power Rangers are four guys and two girls. Not the other way around."

Xander gave Oz a look of abject pity. "Oz, Oz, Oz," shaking his head, "I certainly didn't expect such a sexist remark from you." Oz blinked, but otherwise his face stayed blank. "Since we all followed Buffy here, none of us would have a problem with her being the Red Ranger. You know, the leader of the Rangers?"

Buffy looked about to protest, and then she actually thought about it and smiled slightly. It always worked to stroke the ego Xander congratulated himself.

"And I can be the Blue Ranger, since the Blue Ranger is supposed to be like really, really smart," Willow bubbled, getting caught up in the idea.

"I think I'd rather be the Yellow Ranger. I don't feel like pretending to be a guy or something like that," Amy chose. Xander nodded and handed out the matching color bracelets to those that had decided on their color.

"I'll take Black," Oz said suddenly. "That is if you don't mind," he added, looking at Xander.

Xander grinned and handed the appropriate "communicator" to the Band member.

"That's all right. I'd rather be the 6th Ranger anyway," Xander smugly added.

"Great, now we got these, and we can actually afford to buy them ourselves," Cordelia outlined. "Why don't we all just meet at Buffy's house about…an hour before we have to be at the school to pick up the rug rats? That'll let us all get ready and whatever and plan out what we're going to do and stuff."

They all nodded, agreeing with the simple logic and then got in line to buy their "costumes".

_Halloween  
Buffy's Room_

"Who knew the army surplus store had so many plaid shirts?" Cordelia asked for the fourth time that evening since the girls had gotten back from said Army Surplus store where they had all gotten the "rest" of their costumes.

Xander and Oz had of course been with them, but after that point they had to diverge as the rest had to be done at different stores at the mall.

It was Oz, ironically enough who had no younger siblings, who had pointed out the logical conclusion to what the rest of their costumes, besides the "Communicators" should be. Color-coded clothing.

So, they had all raced to find six pairs of jeans, plaid work shirts, and tank tops in the colors of yellow, red, pink, black, blue, and either green or white. Xander said that he actually had a pair of white jeans at home. Unfortunately, Amy, Buffy, and Cordelia did not have yellow, red, or pink jeans... that fit.

Now, they were all at Buffy's house, which they had planned as the meeting point and the girls were just finished changing. The result, to say the least, was spectacular.

Cordelia was also doing Willow and Amy's make-up while Buffy did their hair.

"Apparently the Army just got too many," Buffy replied, long ago having lost the interest in coming up with more clever comebacks to Cordelia's inane questions.

"Yeah, well, I was wishing they had at least one blue one in my size," Willow complained. Hers and Amy's had both been too large for their petite frames while Buffy and Cordelia had managed to get red work shirts that fit just fine. So for Willow and Amy, that meant they had to have almost ridiculous knots tied to keep the shirts from looking like coats, and rolled the sleeves up until they too were quite bulky.

Just then the doorbell rang, and at just the right time too as the fashion-masters Buffy and Cordy finished their final touches on Amy and Willow.

Buffy went downstairs first, followed by the others in color order (Red-Pink-Yellow-Blue). She opened the door to see Oz and Xander standing there, looking impressive in their own rights. Oz's hair, which had been purple just the day before, was now a complete solid black.

"Go Rangers! Wow! You look SO good I'm wondering what the Spandex uniforms would look like right now." Xander cheered at the sight of the girls all lined up side-by-side. They all looked at each other, and then gave him an x4 "Girl death glare".

It didn't seem to affect him too badly as Xander just tossed each of the girls a large copper coin, although from the shininess it looked gold.

"What are these?" Amy asked.

"Our power coins," Oz was the one to answer, holding up his own token.

"Actually I think they're like fake Spanish doubloons," Xander admitted, walking into the Summer's home. "I found them in the 'junk bin' at the magic store after our shopping excursion yesterday and figured that you can't be a Ranger without Power Coins. It's like an unofficial rule somewhere."

The glares continued, so Xander finally rolled his eyes and explained, "Look we're going to be around the target audience all night and you think that they're just going to believe we're the Power Rangers just cause we have watches and wear matching outfits. This way they don't keep ragging on us and make with the over-zealous whining. We show them proof, make up something about only need to transform when the Big Ugly Monster shows up, and we're all happy because they aren't whining at us anymore."

They all thought it over, then steadily agreed. "Good idea, Xander," Buffy immediately pocketed her "Power Coin" as did all the others.

"Yeah, who would have thought that it took one with a child-like mind to anticipate childish behavior," Cordelia bit. Xander just gave her a dirty look.

"Good thing they aren't the real Pink and White Rangers," Oz whispered to Willow as they left Buffy's home. She smirked and nodded.

_Sunnydale Street_

After leaving the school, just as much for safety reasons as the way their costumes "worked together", they all went in pretty much the same direction, walking their kids along the same streets, and keeping within sight of one another.

As expected, the first thing that most of the kids asked when they saw the teenagers by themselves was "What's your costume supposed to be?"

It was at those times that all of them, even Cordelia, praised Xander for his idea with the coins and the communicators. What was surprising though was how many of the kids with Putty costumes had ended up in the "Rangers" groups. In fact, as Willow counted and told them all during a brief respite where they all went up to the same house, _all_ of the kids that had gotten Putty costumes from Ethan's were in their groups. There were little demons, a cowboy, fairies, and princess costumes as well, but between the six groups, there were over thirty Putties.

Xander's group had a pair who had somehow managed to put on their costumes inside out. The tags were showing. Xander pointed out their error, but in retaliation they made fun of him being a "civilian Power Ranger".

The sun had set just over an hour ago and all the kids were having a blast, and all the teens were too, despite being anxious to drop the kids off with their parents so they could all go Party, capital P, at the Bronze. Xander looked at his "communicator" which really did have a working digital clock in it, and noticed the time was about 5:45pm.

He looked up and noticed Willow's group passing his and going in the direction he'd just come from, and Buffy across the street but going in the same direction he was. He waved to the both of them, and then pointed at his communicator. Willow looked and smiled at him. Buffy just nodded back at him and then bent down to welcome "her kids" back from the house they'd just come from.

He couldn't help but hear her comment on the toothbrushes, smiling as he directed his own troops to the last house before they would all head back to the school.

_Ethan's Costume Shop: Back Room_

The curtains leading into the back room of Ethan's Costume Shop slipped aside as Ethan stepped through. He knelt before a statue that had a man's face on one side and a woman's on the other. He pressed his hands together and winced in pain. When he pulled them apart there were wounds in his palms with blood flowing freely from them.

"The world that denies thee, thou inhabit."

He dabbed some of the blood from his left hand with his right middle finger and smeared it over his right eyelid.

"The peace that ignores thee..."

He dabbed the blood from his right hand with his left middle finger and smeared it over his left eyelid.

" ...thou corrupt. "

He dabbed blood from his left hand with his right middle finger again and smeared a cross onto his forehead.

"Chaos. I remain, as ever, they faithful, degenerate son."

"Janus, evoco vestram animam. Exaudi meam causam. Carpe noctem pro consilio vestro. Veni, appare et nobis monstra quod est infinita potestas." (Janus, I invoke your spirit. Hear my plea. Seize the night for your own reason. Come, appear and show to us that which is infinite power.)

"Persona se corpum et sanguium commutandum est. Vestra sancta praesentia concrescet viscera. Janus! Sume noctem!" (The mask transforms itself into flesh and blood. Your holy presence curdles the heart. Janus! Take the night!)

"Showtime!"

_Sunnydale Street_

Xander stopped, almost stumbling as a wave of dizziness passed through him. Then all of the children he'd been guiding across the street suddenly turned into whatever their costumes were and suddenly scattered in the mixed chaos that had erupted in the streets.

Willow and Amy had been on the porches of their last houses, Willow going up to, Amy leaving, when the same dizziness struck them at the same time. Amy's troop of monsters scattered, hers having the most Putties among the kids. Willow, clearing her head for a moment, didn't have it so lucky as one of the kids in front of the kind old woman he was getting candy from, suddenly started to strangle her.

"Hey!" the Blue Ranger sprung into action to defend the innocent and helpless against threats, leaping forward and twisting the mini-demon's arms back to release the woman, and then she did a sweep kick combined with twirling it around and then threw it off the porch. The other mini-demons that had been in Willow's group, seeing this, quickly scattered.

Buffy and Oz quickly found each other in the confusion, both of their groups scattering as soon as the transformation had occurred as well. That didn't last long as all the Putties in the area found them shortly there after. They began to circle about, waving their arms and legs crazily about, as they usually did when attacking the Rangers.

The Red and Black Rangers stood back to back, both in martial arts stances to defend against the Putties' attacks. "Oz, do you see the others?" Buffy asked over the racket, "I thought they were nearby."

"I lost track of Cordy and Amy, but Willow and Xander are heading our way," Oz pointed. Buffy nodded, keeping most of her attention on the putties.

"Is it my imagination or are these like pygmy Putties?" Buffy suddenly asked.

"I noticed that too," the Black Ranger confirmed as the Blue and White Rangers suddenly flipped over the wall of transformed clay soldiers.

"Hey guys, miss us?" Xander teased with a lopsided grin, settling into his own martial arts stance.

"As if!" Buffy teased right back, giving him a ribbing grin. He returned it.

"What happened?" Willow demanded to know. "One second…I think I'm helping trick-or-treater's and then I'm pulling some mini-demon off an old lady handing out candy to it…and now we're facing off against mini-Putties?"

Everyone paused as they all thought the Blue Ranger's observations through. "Thinking what I'm thinking?" Buffy asked.

"Spell," everyone said.

"But who?" Xander asked. "The Master used vamps, Spike just took over for him, and I can't remember the last time we had to deal with just Putties."

"We'll have to figure that out a bit later Xand," Buffy called out as the Putties stopped circling and suddenly went on full attack. "Stick close! We can take these guys!"

"Right!" they all answered back.

They split up, all going on as much offensive as the Putties were.

_Nearby_

Across the street, Cordelia and Amy had just found each other, having to fight off a couple of Putties and several mini-demons. Cordy even had to fend off and then knock out some kind of werewolf/dog creature that she had spent all of three seconds screaming over before sweep kicking it on it's back, and then knocking it out with a kick to the face.

"Cordy!" Amy shouted the moment they were within sight of each other.

"Amy!" the Pink Ranger shouted back, relieved beyond words. "What the heck is going on?" they both asked each other at the exact same time. Having their answer, they just sighed and then started looking about for another source of answers.

Unfortunately they didn't find any, but what they did find, they wished they hadn't.

A seven foot, brownish rust colored, slimy demon with glowing red eyes and a large sucker, like on squids' tentacles, for a mouth ringed with sharp fangs, snuck up behind them and growled out in a throaty kind of growl, "Well, well, what do we have here? Two normal teenagers in the midst of this storm of chaos? Normally, as a resident of the Hellmouth and a Plasmodia demon, I stay in on Halloween. But when we Plasmids detect such magicks as this about, none of us could possibly stay in to ignore it."

The girls had backed up immediately as soon as they noticed the demon, which somehow in their guts they knew was a real demon and not like the mini-demons that had been attacking them so far. "Ew, gross. And what they heck do you want? To stop the…magic?" Cordelia asked it, still backing up as it continued to approach them.

The demon gave a reply that sounded nothing like, but could have been laughter before answering, "Quite the contrary. I'm going to enjoy feasting on you and any other untransformed humans I come across this night! You think vampires are bad? Just think of me as one really, really big mosquito."

Cordy and Amy shared a look before shrugging and replying together, "OK." Then they proceeded to try and swat the mosquito.

_Sunnydale Street_

Meanwhile, the other Rangers were doing ok, but they were still way outnumbered. And there were still too many normal humans around to risk morphing just yet.

"Willow!" Buffy called, after knocking a number of the Putties into each other.

"Uh-Yeah?" Willow replied after flipping one of her own opponents.

"Try to reach Giles at the Library and see if he can figure any of this out!" the Team Leader ordered. "Oz! Xan! Let's cover her!" she then moved in to her own position to cover her redheaded friend.

Immediately the other Rangers moved into a semi-circle around Willow as she stopped fighting and starting trying her communicator. First, she tried to contact Giles at the Library. The one that always had the answers to the supernatural problems of the Hellmouth, their Watcher.

"Giles! Giles, come in! It's Willow! Come on Giles, we need some serious help out here? Giles?" Willow waited and kept trying for a whole minute, but nothing but air static answered her.

"Guys!" she shouted to the others, "Giles isn't answering! It's like he's not there, or the communicators aren't working!"

"Try the others!" Buffy shouted, jumping up and roundhouse kicking one Putty into a group of others.

"Amy! Cordy! Are you there?" Willow shouted into her wrist device.

Half a second of static followed that felt like an eternity to Willow, half-expecting no response as before but mostly hoping to hear something. Lucky for her sanity, half a second was all she had to wait.

"Willow!" Amy's voice came over the communicator.

"Amy! Thank god! Where are you? I can't reach Giles, and we're being attacked by Putties!" Willow informed her teammate of the situation.

"We see you! We're not far away and coming as fast as we can. Oh, and we've got a little company," Amy cut the connection.

"Company?" Willow asked, when suddenly the Yellow and Pink Rangers flipped over the crowd of Putties, joining their friends in the center of the conflict. The Blue Ranger quickly rejoined the conflict.

All of a sudden, the Putties parted, showing the demon that had been chasing the two Rangers. "Whoa. Really gross," Oz commented when they noticed the Plasmodia demon.

The Putties more or less formed up in a shallow V line with the demon at the point and looked at it. A just barely recognizable look of comprehension suddenly filled the large demons face. The demon chuckled and nodded. "I've always wanted to have an army of minions, and vampires are just too stupid or ambitious to work with. Get them!" All the Putties attacked.

"OK, that just made things worse than they need to be," Buffy whined. She quickly looked about, seeing that, for the moment, they, the demon, and the mini-Putties were the only ones on the street. "Let's do it guys!"

"Right!" they all shouted back, nodding their heads in agreement.

Almost unconsciously, they all gathered in a line, which Buffy and Xander were at the head of. "It's Morphin' Time!" Buffy shouted, reaching into her pocket for her Power Coin.

******

A clap of thunder was heard over the Hellmouth.

Chaos magic works in very unpredictable ways. That's why it is called chaos.

Ethan Rayne, while a powerful Sorcerer, and a loyal follower of chaos, most definitely did not have the amount of power it would take to transform six semi-ordinary teenagers into true Power Rangers, even for a limited time. The demons, Putties, and other costumes had been easy since he could use possessing demons to do much of the actual transformation.

But again, chaos works in unpredictable ways.

The Power Rangers TV show and movies, while purely fictional, had some similarities to the way magic worked. Among those similarities was the Morphin Grid. The writers had heard of lines of mystic power running over and under the surface of the Earth and had given it a new cooler name: the Morphin Grid.

The spell of _costume chaos_ lacked the power to do what was demanded of it. But it's intent to "morph" the rangers drew down a far greater power like a kite string attracting a thunderbolt. The mighty ley lines that intersected under and over Sunnydale flared with energy and poured it into the six teenagers. The power went past the surface making changes to the cores of their beings.

******

Thunder roared as the Rangers transformed.

Xander: "White Slayer Power!"

Cordelia: "Pink Slayer Power!"

Oz: "Black Slayer Power!"

Willow: "Blue Slayer Power!"

Amy: "Yellow Slayer Power!"

Buffy: "Red Slayer Power!" A blinding flash of light, and a rainbow stream of energy surrounded the teens for a moment longer before the Slayer Rangers suddenly stood before the horde of Putties and demon.

"What the…? I thought you were just normal teenagers!" the demon screamed.

"Yeah right!" Red Ranger Buffy shouted back. "You're dust, you overgrown insect!"

"We slay evil where it gathers, to protect the world!" Yellow Ranger Amy followed.

"To protect the innocent and the decent and to safeguard our planet for the future…" Blue Ranger Willow left it hanging only to have Black Ranger Oz pick it up.

"We fight the demons, the vampires and the forces of Darkness!"

"And we look good doing it too!" Pink Ranger Cordelia added with flair.

White Ranger Xander took a step forward, a white battle saber appearing in his hands as he pointed it at the demon, "The demon kinds like yours that prey on humans are our enemies. Get ready demon, because you're about to face…"

"THE SLAYER RANGERS!" all six shouted at once, each drawing a unique weapon out of nowhere.

"Nice choreography," the demon commented, "But you talk way too much, when you should be…" it never finished its sentence as the Rangers sprung into action so fast, it began to wonder if the Power Rangers really _had_ come to Sunnydale.

It was while she was holding onto one Putty while knocking the living snot out of five more that the Red Ranger noticed it. She had been holding it by a chokehold, and as she looked down just as she was about to flip it into another pile of Putties, she noticed a small white tag coming from the back of it's neck.

"What the…?" she asked as her other hand and foot lashed out to protect her from other attacks as she looked closer at the tag. It read "Ethan's Halloween Shop" along with size information. The size of a child if Buffy judged correctly.

A wave of cold horror filled her being as she knocked the Putty away. They were fighting _children_! The horror gave way to the anger, pure unrestrained hatred. Whoever had done this to innocent children was going to pay, and pay dearly.

"XANDER!" she shouted over the fight.

"What?" he asked back casually.

"They're little kids! All of the Putties! They're kids! We have to end this quick because I don't want to know what shape they'll be in when whatever this spell is that's done this wears off!" the leader of the Rangers ordered.

The White Ranger nodded. Then an idea struck him. He pulled out and then reversed his battle saber so the hilt was facing him. He tapped the tiger's face and said, "Saba! I need your help!"

The hilt of the head of a Tiger suddenly came to life and spoke with a rather proper American accent as it asked, "And how may I be of service White Ranger?"

"Knock out all the Putties! Don't hurt them; they're really little kids in Halloween costumes. Just one quick smack to the back of the neck please!" the White Ranger requested.

"Of course, not a problem," the Tiger said before it suddenly flew out of Xander's hands and then started smacking Putties on the back of the heads, immediately knocking them to the ground.

In less than a single minute, all the Putties were knocked out, and as usual when Putties were defeated, they vanished in a rainbow flash of lights…leaving unconscious children, wearing their Putty costumes.

The Rangers turned as one towards the demon.

"Uhh…" it moaned out its fear and then suddenly made a gesture at its wrist. "Oh wow! Look at the time! I'm outta here!" then it started to run.

"It's mine," the Red Ranger growled out dangerously, her long sword in her hand.

She got into a basic Kendo stance; glaring after the demon, and then everyone saw a deep red glow around her body and the blade.

She started to run after it, at first not very fast, but she kept getting faster and faster until she was a red streak. "SLAYER SWORD FULL POWER!" she shouted. The guard around the hilt suddenly changed, from compact and round, to pointed and deadly spikes on each side. The red glow around the blade reached critical mass, and then the Red Ranger ran her fingers along it's flat edge from hilt to tip, and in the wake of her fingers, burning white energy replaced the glowing metal.

With a mighty cry, the Red Ranger slashed downward with the white energy blade, temporarily paralyzing the demon so that when she passed it by in her charge, her blade could slice clean through it instead of as it ran. In a surprise move, as she had just passed it, she turned around mid-air and cut a second swipe through the demon, and then continued to flip about until all her momentum had been used up and she caught herself in a steady pose as the demon exploded right behind her.

The explosion quickly died down, leaving only fairy fire, which also quickly vanished in a poof of harmless smoke.

"You all right?" Xander asked when Buffy rejoined the group.

"I will be when we find out who is up to this," she growled. "Little kids! And I think I know where to start looking."

"Where?" Willow asked immediately.

"Look at one of the tags on the costumes. I bet they all say Ethan's Halloween Shop. But we should check on Giles, make sure that the Library hasn't been compromised…again." The Red Ranger outlined.

The Black, Yellow, and Blue Rangers all nodded. "We'll go," Oz offered.

The Red Ranger nodded back. "Wills, you, Amy and Oz go to the Library. See if Giles is OK, and check out what could be causing this. Cordy, Xander and I will head for the shop. Contact us when you've caught Giles up to speed guys. Chances are we'll run into more kids turned into monsters along the way, but obviously our Ranger powers allow us to detect which are real demons and which are not. Trust your instincts, and only if you can't avoid it do you do anything beyond restraining actions against the kids. Everybody understand?"

"Right!" they all said unanimously. Buffy nodded back. "Let's do it then," and they split up.

_Sunnydale High School Library_

Giles was quite grateful for a guaranteed night off from the heavy business of being the Watcher of a Slayer. Tonight he was just going to be a simple librarian and work on the card catalog. It had gotten quite out of hand lately.

He had pulled quite a few suspect and out-of-date cards and was sitting quietly going through them when he noticed the sound of sirens outside. Quite a few of them. And other disturbing sounds of commotion.

He started to shuffle the cards back into a compact bundle so he could go see what was going on. As he did three columns of light appeared in the library. One blue, one yellow, and one…black? Black light?

He jumped in surprise and the cards went flying all over the table and floor.

The columns vanished almost immediately to reveal three figures clad in tight outfits of white and another color. Each figure was clad in the same color as the column of light. Each was wearing a similarly colored full-face helmet with relief details that reminded him vaguely of animals.

The blue one started towards him immediately. "Giles, you're OK! We were so worried when we couldn't get you on the communicators! Something odd is going on, I mean there's something odd always going on but this is more than our usual brand of weird," the figure said all of this without taking a breath.

Giles took an involuntary step back.

The yellow and black-clad figures had reached up and removed their helmets to reveal Amy and another boy he didn't immediately recognize.

"A-Amy? What are you doing here?" Giles asked.

"Like Willow said, Giles. What's wrong with you?" asked the Yellow Ranger, concerned.

The blue figure took off her helmet to reveal Willow.

"Willow? How did you get here? Why are you wearing that outfit?"

The Rangers glanced at each other in confusion and concern. Giles was acting way weird.

"Did the spell affect you, too, Giles?" asked Willow finally. "Do you remember who you are? Our Watcher?"

"Yes, I believe I am quite well… _Your_ Watcher? All of you?"

"Well, of course all of us. We are the Slayer Rangers. So that means we need a Watcher," Willow said.

Giles stared for several moments, obviously thinking things over. Finally, after a long hesitation, he opened his mouth to say, "Perhaps I-I am a b-bit confused. Eh, why don't you tell me our history as you remember it?"

"Giles, do we have time for this? There are hordes of Putties and Demons, and who knows what else loose on the streets. We're pretty sure it's a spell, so can't we just get to work on that?" said Amy.

"Just humor me a moment. Willow?" said Giles.

"OK, how far do you want to go back?"

"Why don't you start with Buffy's arrival in Sunnydale and include how each of you became a…Ranger, I believe was the term?"

Willow rolled her eyes, but began: "Buffy came to Sunnydale after her last Watcher died and she burnt down the gym. You had arrived here to be her Watcher and the Librarian. Xander and I met Buffy at lunch her first day, and found out about vampires and stuff at the Bronze that night."

"The next major thing was the Harvest. Xander and I helped you evacuate the Bronze while Luke was fighting Buffy. Oz was there and he helped, too. Afterwards, he stayed around and since he knew about vampires…." Giles nodded, saying he understood.

"Then Amy's witch mom went all psycho and switched bodies with her so she could be a cheerleader, and we took care of her."

"Cordelia came around with the invisible girl thing and started being a friend."

"Then there was the first prophecy thing and Buffy died, but Xander went with her and did CPR and brought her back."

"Then we had that problem with that band of nomad vampires right before school started where we all worked together to slay them."

"That's when you realized she and us were supposed to become the Slayer Rangers."

"I did? Why?" asked Giles.

"It was the other prophecy thing," said Willow. "It went:"

"_The Chosen One falls but lives again  
She shall find Five who See the Night  
Rainbow Warriors now share her mystic might  
Rangers Six hold shut the Mouth of Hell_

_And with their coming, Salvation knells."_

"You got the power coins from the Watcher's Council and they worked for us. So now we are the Slayer Rangers."

"I see…." Giles began to wipe his glasses.

"But let's get to tonight's problem!" Willow urged.

"Quite right! So you said something more much odder than the normal oddities was happening?"

"Yes, we were doing the Safety Program thing when there was this wave of dizziness hit all of us for a moment and then all the little kids turned into their costumes. Lots of Putties, Giles. We also had a 'Demon-of-the-Week' but Buffy took him out with her Slayer Sword."

"I see. You say everyone became their costumes?"

"Well, most of them. We saw a few people running around in obvious costumes who were normal, but most of them changed."

"Oh, dear. So did you see any other clues? It would be best to have all the facts before getting out the books."

"Well, we realized that the Putties were just kids when Buffy noticed a tag on one of them. He must have put on his costume inside out. We knocked out the rest and they turned back into kids in costumes. We found tags on lots of them. They were all from the new costume shop. Ethan's."

_A Different Sunnydale Street_

Spike and about a dozen of his minions were walking along the street, every one of them vamped out. Dru was by his side, strangely quiet and not talking after all her prophesying before. The master vampire didn't let that bother him though. He was having too much fun.

"Well this is just…neat!" Spike said as he watched all the little creatures that he could smell and knew to be human children run around and cause general chaos, but at the same time they were demons too. Already he and his minions were attracting a number of the transformed children, who all quickly decided to join his gang.

Then it all came crashing down as three armored figures came running around the corner. One was dressed in mostly red with only white around her arms, calves, and around a coin like emblem in the center of her chest. He could tell it was a 'her' from the contours of the armor. The other two were in more spandex-style armor, one in white with a gold and black chest plate armor with a similar coin symbol in the center chest region. The other was in a non-armored form of the one in red, but pink and with more white to her uniform.

"Well, well, well, lookie what we got here," Spike drawled, overconfident.

The red armored figure stopped and seemed to seethe at the sight of the vampire and his gang. "I'm sure you're enjoying this you worm," she cursed. That was all it took for Spike to recognize her voice. He blinked in shock for a moment before the toothy grin returned.

"Slayer?" he asked. "What the bloody hell are you doing in that getup pet?"

"Oh that does it…" the Slayer cursed and started forward but the other two stopped her.

"B—Red Ranger, we've got to get going. We don't have the time to deal with this creep," the one in white and black spoke to her.

Spike started again, "Red Ranger!" Then he burst out laughing, along with all of his minions. All except that is, the Rangers…and Drusilla.

The vampiress sire of William the Bloody whimpered at what she saw had happened to the humans, and what it meant for her and her "family". Barely without anyone even noticed, she stepped back, and before anyone knew it, disappeared into the shadows.

One person though, did notice her sudden absence.

"Uh…guys? Dru-belle's gone," Cordelia said loud enough that Spike heard her even over his own laughter.

"And that's a bad thing?" Xander asked her incredulously.

Cordelia then pressed a button on the side of her helmet that activated the radio in their helmets so only they could hear each other and no one else. "No, it's a good thing, cause it keeps Spike distracted long enough for us to move on."

"Cordy, I am _not_ just leaving Spike out here to do whatever the hell he wants. And look at how many kids he's got with him! What do you think he's going to do when they suddenly turn back into humans?" Buffy interrupted over the commlink.

"So lets make sure he follows us instead," Xander replied in the same way.

"Dru? Dru! Pet, where are you?!" Spike was starting to panic.

"I don't have time for this," Buffy shouted at the vampire, though making it seem for said vampire's benefit that she was saying it to her friends. Then she suddenly rushed the vampires, startling most of them, before she just suddenly leaped impossibly high, even for a number of demons, over the entire group and then kept running in the direction the Rangers had been going. The White and Pink Rangers quickly joined her.

Spike, momentarily forgetting about his missing sire, turned to his minions and shouted, "Get them! I think it's time I got my fourth Slayer." The entire gang chased after the three Rangers, picking up any strange child-turned-demon they came along.

******

"OK, they're chasing us, now what?" Cordelia asked.

"Now Xander wheedles them down," Buffy answered. Xander took the cue and suddenly it was as if he just disappeared mid-step.

"I love it when he does that," Cordelia giggled.

Under her helmet, Buffy grinned too.

******

Back with the horde of demonic creatures chasing them, the number had almost reached a hundred, about thirty or more of them being true vampires. Xander, standing off to the side of the road and on the roof of a building watched as they all passed him by. He quickly counted and identified who were innocents and who were true demons. He also saw about four more of those demons that Buffy had killed with the Putties show up and join the parade so to speak.

Pulling out Saba, Xander nodded to himself and got to work.

******

Spike was too incensed over Dru's sudden disappearance to be thinking clearly, but he was even more pissed at the Slayer and her two cronies, no doubt the White Hat stooges that help her all the time, to do anything but chase after them.

He just kept urging his pack of vampires and mini-demons on, right at the front, leading the merry chase for the Slayer in red armor.

He was so focused on his goal in fact, that he never noticed that with every corner the pack turned, he lost at least three more real vampires or demons, leaving him with just the transformed people and children.

It wasn't until he realized they were in downtown now, out of the residential areas, that first of all the "Rangers" had stopped running, and there was only two of them. It was also when he realized that he had lost a very large portion of his actual minions. He only had five other vampires with him, besides himself and one idiot who had dressed up as Dracula for Halloween.

Suddenly the White Ranger stepped out of the shadows and joined the Pink and Red Rangers, who had stopped in front of a Halloween costume shop with a big sign saying "Ethan's" on the front. They had turned to face the demon horde coming after them, all three in martial art stances.

"Bloody hell," Spike cursed when he realized what had happened. Then he noticed all the demons he still had with him. His cockiness returned with the affirmation he had over fifty demons on his side, and there were only three "Rangers".

******

"Nice work Xan," Buffy said over the helmet mike.

"Thanks, but they picked up some friends along the way. I took out all the vamps, but the demons required more than stealth permitted I'm afraid," Xander apologized.

"I hate to say it," Cordelia said, "but I think we're going to need some help."

A number more demons, real demons were drawn by the chaos magicks to the surface, and then because of the crowd and Spike's reputation, to this very area to join in the upcoming battle. With each passing minute, more demons showed up so that by the time the door to Ethan's shop opened to reveal the other three Rangers walking out, they were facing a full force of 100 demons, intermixed with transformed humans.

_Ethan's Costume Shop_

The front door of the shop swung open as Giles and the three Rangers came into the shop.

"Hello! Anyone home?" called Giles.

They spread out through the store. Willow noticed the curtain to the back room was slightly open. She called, "Giles?"

Giles looked at Willow, and then went through the curtain where she pointed. All four eyes landed on the statue of Janus that was glowing green.

Willow asked, "What does this mean?"

Giles answered, "Primarily the division of self. Male and female, light and dark."

Ethan appeared out of nowhere. "Chunky and creamy. Oh, no, sorry, that's peanut butter."

Giles stared at Ethan as though he'd seen a ghost.

Giles said, "Rangers, get out of here, now."

Willow protested, "But..."

Giles gritted, "Now!"

They obeyed him and left.

Giles said, "Hello, Ethan."

Ethan replied cheerfully. "Hello, Ripper."

_Street Outside Ethan's Costume Shop_

The Blue, Black, and Yellow Rangers had just left Giles alone with "Ethan" and left the shop for the street right when the parade of demons turned the corner and they all just noticed that the other Rangers had just gotten there.

"Uh…hey guys," Willow greeted as the Slayer Rangers, complete, took up a line of defense in front of the shop.

"What the heck are you three doing here?" Buffy demanded. "You were supposed to go to the Library. We're the ones that go to the costume shop."

"Yeah, we did go to the Library," Amy answered.

"Giles wanted to come here," Oz added.

"So you went to the Library, talked with Giles, and then argued about coming here, and you still got here ahead of us?" Xander asked, incredulous. "That bites!"

"Yeah well, we didn't have to deal with so many distractions like you guys did," Willow pointed at the demons. "And that's another thing. Giles, for just a second, didn't seem to know who we were. Well, I mean he knew _who_ we were, but he didn't know, or at least he seemed to have amnesia about us being the Rangers for some reason. It was all very confusing for several minutes. Then, when we told him the name of the costume shop, he demanded to come here. He wouldn't explain, he just demanded, and then when we tried to argue, he pulled rank. From experience I know that Giles only pulls rank when we're over our heads in Watcher business."

"I think he knows this Ethan guy, that's why he's so out of it. Ethan might have even put some kind of amnesia spell on him in the midst of this," Oz suggested.

The Red Ranger suddenly tensed, and as a chain reaction effect, so did each of the other Rangers. A moment later, Spike stepped to the front of the demon horde. That was when the Rangers noticed that more and more demons were joining the group before them, and right now the number of real, true, non-costume wearing demons was in estimate of over 50 and slowly rising with each new member.

_Ethan's Costume Shop: Back Room_

"What? No hug? Aren't you pleased to see your old mate, Rupert?" Ethan asked with an irritating pout.

"I'm just surprised I didn't guess it was you," Giles almost growled. "This Halloween stunt stinks of Ethan Rayne."

Ethan grinned, maniacally rather proud of himself, "Yes it does, doesn't it? Don't wish to blow my own trumpet, but it's genius. The very embodiment of 'be careful what you wish for'."

Giles took another step forward, his face almost set in stone, and his tone extremely serious, "It's sick, brutal, and it harms the innocent."

"Oh and we all know that you are the champion of innocents and all things pure and good, Rupert," Ethan replied sarcastically. "It's quite a little act you've got going here, old man."

"It's no act," Giles responded immediately, "It's who I am."

"Who you are?" Ethan repeated, incredulous. "The Watcher, sniveling, tweed-clad guardian of the Slayer and her kin? I think not. I know who you are, Rupert, and I know what you're capable of." He briefly stopped, seeming to consider something before continuing, "But they don't, do they? They have no idea where you come from."

"Break the spell, Ethan. Then leave this place and never come back."

"Why should I? What's in the bargain for me?"

"You get to live."

"Oh, Rupert, you're scaring me," Ethan teased.

He didn't have much time to do anything else as Giles suddenly punched him in the gut with a powerful left, making the Chaos sorcerer double over in pain, followed up with a right knee to the head, driving him to the ground.

_Street Outside Ethan's Costume Shop_

The fighting began shortly after all of the demons' patience ran out, which obviously was not very long. The battle raged all over the street, and in order to make sure their Watcher was not disturbed in whatever he was dealing with, they could not split up, or even risk trying to draw the demon army away to a more abandoned area of the Hellmouth.

The Rangers only, or at least one of, saving graces was that they were not fighting a demon _army_ but just a bunch of demons out to kill them. There was as much infighting to get at the Rangers as there was fighting between the Rangers and the demons.

Shortly into the fighting, the Rangers had brought out their primary weapons, Buffy's Sword, Xander and his tiger-talking saber, and the others.

Amy had a pair of daggers that actually were blessed athame's, which was rather appropriate given her background of being a witch, and the athame is a blessed tool used by witches.

Oz, the Black Ranger, had a rather unique and definitely different style weapon than most would expect. His weapons were two sets of claws, commonly known as grappling claws, but are best known as the claws of Wolverine from the X-Men. And he used the black colored blades with the same, if not more so effectiveness that "Wolverine" put them to.

Willow's primary weapon was a pair of tonfas (police batons with a right angle handle close to one end) Sometimes she held it by the handle with it laying along the outside of her forearm and used it to punch demons, other times changing grips and yanking demons feet out from under them.

Cordelia had a pair of pink shape-shifting weapons called "Power Battler" which, as need dictated, changed between a sai and a whip.

Most of the time Cordelia and Willow hung back from the others and used their secondary weapons: a pistol that fired bursts of colored energy.

"Guys!" Willow yelled as she was almost being overwhelmed by a group of Guipure demons, "We're out numbered here! We won't be able to hold out for long at this rate!"

Buffy looked at the numbers stacked against them, and cursed to herself as she realized Willow was right. "Blue Ranger's right guys! Drive'em back with everything you've got, then get ready to bring'em together!"

None of the Rangers were worried about the demons overhearing about their new plan. They hadn't ever used the D.D. Gun enough times for any demon to know they should run as fast as they could away from them the moment they heard the Rangers say that.

Instead, the rather dumb and chaos drunk demons just thought of it as a last plea for help, or a cry of hope, and just started to push harder on the Rangers, not thinking they could do anything to save themselves at this point. Spike was right in the middle of it.

_Ethan's Costume Shop: Back Room_

Ethan lay on the floor, his lip, and several other cuts on his face bleeding, and from the way his leg is twisted and the way he's breathing, he at least has a few broken bones. Giles stands above him, clenching and unclenching his fist as he wipes Ethan's blood from his knuckles.

"And you said the Ripper was long gone," Ethan wheezed from the floor.

"Tell me how to stop the spell," Giles said rather "British-ly".

"Say pretty please," Ethan wheezed through a bloody grin.

The beating continued, as the battle grew more heated outside.

_Street Outside Ethan's Costume Shop_

It had taken a lot more than they had expected, but finally the Rangers had driven the demons back enough to establish a ten foot perimeter between them. Xander had to use his own full power special attack with Saba as Buffy had with her sword, and Cordy and Willow firing non-stop into the demons, instantly killing any true demons they hit while knocking the children unconscious. That was the advantage to having mystically empowered crossbows.

They didn't waste the reprieve on regaining their breath though.

"Let's Put'em together!" Buffy shouted.

All the Rangers held up their primary weapons, which began to glow brightly, each the color of the Ranger that owned it.

******

On the edges of the crowd of monsters were two of Spike's minion vampires, named Josh & Troy. Spike had found and turned them near a hotel nightclub, not realizing that the two had been at the hotel for the Role-Playing Games convention being held that weekend. Spike had turned them for their size. They had been both rather tall and bulky, but at that time it had mostly been fat. When they had become vampires the fat had gone out of them leaving them tall and adequately muscled. They looked good in mass intimidations, but they were still rather cowardly geeks.

When they heard the Red Ranger say "Let's put them together" the two minions looked at each other in concern.

"Did she just say what I think she did?" said Troy

"I think so. Do you think running or hiding?" said Josh.

"Ummmmmmmm, BOTH! Sewer!" concluded Troy.

They both frantically started looking for a manhole. They found one, and started pulling up the cover.

Spike had been pushed back into the midst of the crowd and now saw what the two were doing. "What are you bleeding wankers doing? Get in there!"

"Boss, I think it's time to leave. The Red Ranger said they were going to put it together. It's time to save vs. box text."

"What the heck?" said Spike.

"They're about to fire their super-weapon. It blows up monsters really good. And I don't think Rita or Zed are going to be around to revive us and grow us to building size after that."

"Guess you might be right. Maybe that's what Drusilla was going on about after we saw those costumed freaks." said Spike.

The finally got the lid off. "After You, Boss"

Spike leapt down the hole, followed by Joshua, Troy climbed down the ladder, and pulled the lid back on.

The lid clanged shut just as the Rangers had cleared the space between them and the monsters.

******

"Saba!" Xander yelled and threw the white saber into the air above them.

Halfway there, the tiger-headed hilt disconnected from the blade, and the blade itself split in half and then were held horizontal in mid air while the hilt connected beneath them like a trigger for a _really_ big crossbow.

"Power Blasters!" Cordelia and Willow threw up their crossbows, which each connected underneath one of the blades.

Willow called out again, "Power Baton!" and threw the blue stick up, which somehow with the bladed end retracted looked like another blaster, and connected underneath the blade next to her crossbow blaster.

"Power Battler!" Cordy called, throwing up her own pink blaster to settle beside her crossbow underneath that half of the blade.

"Power Claws!" Oz called as his claws flew up, almost by themselves, and connected underneath the crossbow blaster portions, creating a more dangerous effect than just the blaster holes by themselves did.

"Power Athame!" Amy fused her two athame's together, creating a larger, more crystal looking dagger, before sending it to join at the exact point where the two blades met and connected with the hilt/trigger.

The armored Red Ranger was the last and pulled out her Slayer Sword, and then activated it so the spikes were fully emerged before she leaped up to where the weapon floated. She attached the sword directly over the handle, making a spiked bayonet for the powerful and dangerous looking blaster weapon, shouting, "Slayer Sword! Demon Death Gun Activate!"

She landed right on the spot where she had leaped from and all the others joined up beside her, Xander, the White Ranger immediately beside her, and held the hilt/trigger with her. That made sense since Saba was his weapon.

"FIRE!!!" all six shouted at once and a rainbow of six colors shot out of the beam.

The beam went completely through the first demon. He began to flame as if caught in sunlight. The beam came out of his back and immediately divided into two beams identical to the one fired from the Ranger's super-weapon. These beams hit the next two nearest demons where the same thing happened. Again and again. The result was a brilliant rainbow web of destruction connecting all the demons for several seconds.

The vampires caught fire as if caught in sunlight from within. The true demons screamed as white light consumed them from the inside out, and the light shone out of their eyes and mouths. Those transformed by their cursed costumes shimmered brightly with light.

The second after the last demon was hit the beam stopped. The vampires collapsed into dust. The demons collapsed into ash. Costumed people collapsed to the ground.

_Ethan's Costume Shop: Back Room_

Giles finishes up the latest beating with a solid kick to the ribs, eliciting a final cry from the chaos sorcerer. "Now tell me how to stop the spell," Giles repeats.

"Janus. Break its statue," Ethan replied, defeated.

Giles looked outside where there was a blazing flash of rainbow colored lights. He looked out the window and saw the Rangers destroying the last of the demons. Only when they had stopped firing did he rush to the table, where the glowing statue still sat, raised it over his head, and sent it smashing to the floor.

_Street Outside Ethan's Costume Shop_

A wave of dizziness passed over the Rangers again, but it happened much quicker than it had before so they barely even noticed it. They did notice the other effects though. All the children turning back into humans.

The Pink Ranger let out a huge sigh of relief. "Thank goodness that's over, huh?"

"You said it Cor-err, uh Pink Ranger," the White Ranger quickly corrected as he realized the kids could hear them. Lucky for the Rangers, they were still too disoriented to make much sense of anything.

Buffy realized this and acknowledged they didn't have time to try and teleport out, and she wanted to make sure Giles was okay first. "Guys! Quick! De-morph, while they're still out of it!" the leader of the Slayer Rangers ordered.

They all gave a confirming nod, and then with a mental command and force of will, let go of their powers. In a flash of their own color and ethereal, astral plane magicks, the Slayer Rangers disappeared…and left Amy, Buffy, Cordelia, Oz, Willow, and Xander in their place.

"What. The. Hell?" Buffy asked in monosyllable.

They were all just standing there, in their matching costumes as Snyder had ordered, the color-coded clothing, the costume watches/communicators, and a bunch of confused and scared looking kids right in front of them. And they remembered everything.

Every. Thing.

"Oh my gawd," Cordelia gawked as her eyes glazed over in memory.

"Hunh," Oz grunted. Then he looked around and saw all the dust and ash on the ground. "Cool."

"Cool?" Willow, Xander, Amy and Buffy all repeated, disbelieving.

Oz just pointed at the dust and ash. They then had to acknowledge that knowing they had just vanquished over a hundred demons was, as he put it, "Cool."

"Omigawd! Giles!" Willow started, and turned around and ran towards the shop, all the others immediately on her tail. Although Cordelia wondered why she would even care, but just knew that she did and followed anyway.

Fortunately the door opened before they got to it, and Giles came out, a little madder than usual, but overall unscathed.

_Ethan's Costume Shop: Back Room_

Giles turned around, once he was certain the magic was really stopped, only to find Ethan already gone, as if he had never been there.

Giles sighed, mentally cursing himself. But for the moment, he put it behind him and walked outside to see how his… charges were doing.

_Just Before School Starts  
November 1st  
Sunnydale High School Library_

It had been a busy Tuesday night for everyone, and because of the "unexplained riots" as the news was calling last night's working of chaos magic, school had almost, _almost_ been canceled. Almost.

But still, everyone, because of necessity, showed up at school. Six, a bit earlier than normal, just an hour after the sun had fully risen. They all went straight to the School Library the moment they got there, and coincidently enough, all arrived at the same time.

"Hey guys," Buffy greeted everyone. She took the time to look them all over. They looked tired, but in good spirits. Amy was wearing a yellow blouse with blue jeans, Cordelia was wearing a light red skirt and a soft pink, collared blouse, Oz was in black denims and a black T-shirt, Willow was wearing a blue denim skirt that Buffy herself had helped the redhead pick out, and a white T-shirt with a dark blue vest over that. Xander was the surprise as he wore plain, almost white faded blue jeans and a plain white T-shirt with a single color beige dress shirt, left open and untucked.

Xander smiled at the looks all of the girls gave his clothes. Even he had to admit, as he thought back, he normally wore a more color-diverse outfit, but this morning, he just didn't have the energy to try and put something like that together. At least that was what he was telling himself.

"How are you all doing?" Buffy asked, concerned for her…friends? The emotion to confirm the thought came too quickly to deny or further question it.

Amy shrugged and Oz frowned a little. "Vampires and demons are real. I'm dealing," he admitted.

"I knew about this stuff from…before," Willow and Buffy both nodded they understood as to what Amy was referring to, "but now… Guys, I want in. I…caught a glimpse last night of what you do, and for a while after the deal with my mom and getting settled with my dad and his family…" Amy trailed off for a second before she seemed to fully resolve herself to her decision. "I want in. I can't just stand by while…demons keep trying to destroy the world and do nothing."

The school was opening up and Buffy could hear the other early arrivals start to walk the halls. She gestured to the swing doors and said, "C'mon, let's continue this privately." They all entered the Library.

"Look, I know that I kept getting dragged into situations where I got involved or needed to be saved by you guys before the whole costume deal, but…" Cordelia began as they all took seats around the central table, "Amy's right. Maybe it's a side effect, or somehow I got the Pink Ranger's sense of duty to keep or whatever, but…I can't just sit by and wait to be rescued by you guys while you're trying to save the world at the same time. I may not be good on the reading Latin or fighting the Big Bads like you guys are, but I can bring in snacks, not to mention I've got a car."

"I'm in too," was all Oz said. He had a look that was similar to Willow's "Resolve Face".

Buffy, Willow and Xander each shared looks with one another. It was strange, because they now all had two sets of memories from the point of when Buffy moved to Sunnydale. Of how it was just the three of them and Giles, how the two of them were the Slayerettes while Buffy was the Slayer. The Scooby Gang against the demon underworld, fighting _real_ ghosts and goblins and demons.

Then…there was the point of view of the "Slayer Rangers".

Ultimately, from the looks on her two best friends' faces, Buffy knew the decision was ultimately hers. She was the only one with the real destiny. The others were just offering to help shoulder some of her burden. She smiled and she remembered conversations she'd previously had with Amy and Cordelia, and while the latter was too self-involved for her own good, she was still a nice person that Buffy wanted to know. And so was Amy. Oz, they had all just met, Slayer Ranger memories aside, and she could not yet give an objective statement about him, but she knew that it was an all or none deal at the moment.

She looked each of the other three in the eye, and saw the conviction, the need, and the resolve in them. She smiled and nodded. "OK. But there are certain rules. Number one, Vampires. Don't invite them in. Sunlight, holy water, crosses, fire…and me kill them. Keep a stake, cross, and holy water with you at all times when you go out at night, and even keeping them readily available during the day couldn't hurt. This concludes the rules."

The new Slayerettes all grinned and had relieved expressions. Talk went to more trivial matters until Giles came in, surprised to seeing them all there. He had a hard expression on his face, as though he were angry and trying to bottle down the reason for it.

"Giles? What's wrong?" Buffy asked when she noticed.

He looked up at her, slightly startled. He had thought he'd hidden his feelings a bit better. Either way, hiding the truth from them right now would do no one any good, and it wasn't a particularly vile secret.

"I…went to the Halloween shop this morning. Ethan's gone. Packed everything and abandoned the shop, and there's no trace of him anywhere," Giles admitted.

Amy cursed and Cordelia grumbled something that no one really heard. Oz had an indifferent expression, while the other, experienced three looked as if they had half expected that to be the case.

"Don't worry," Buffy comforted her Watcher as he walked to the table, "He can't do us or Sunnydale any more harm, and if he does come back, we'll get him."

Giles nodded, smiling at his Slayer with gratitude for her sympathy.

"Now, could you please explain what you're all doing here so early?" he asked. Then he took a closer look and added, "And why you're all still wearing those…er, 'costumes'?"

They all startled and everyone looked at one another and then down at him or herself.

"What are you talking about G-man?" Xander asked. "These are clothes. OK, I admit, normally I don't wear stuff so light, but I was too tired to try and piece together a more colorful outfit."

"Thank god!" all four girls exclaimed. Xander glared at them.

"Uhm, yes, quite," Giles stuttered. "But actually, I was referring to, um…" he pointed at Xander's wrist. Everyone then looked and noticed as if for the first time that they were all still wearing the costume watches they'd bought from Ethan's.

"Huh," Buffy grunted. "I didn't even notice. Well… they're harmless now, and they are pretty cool, and keep the time well enough. Too bad they can't really be communicators though."

"Yeah, I've been thinking about that," Willow said suddenly. "I think that I can set us all up with some cell phones, and we wouldn't even get charged for service or anything. It would make it easier in a crisis and Buffy can check in with Giles when she comes across something weird on Patrol."

"Cool," Oz observed.

"Yes, well, um Buffy…" Giles started to speak, but Buffy held up her hand for pause.

"Giles, there's one more thing…" she looked at the others, then gestured at Amy, Cordelia, and Oz, "The others know my secret…Amy and Cordy obviously already knew, but Oz found out with the whole costume deal last night and…they want to help. The same way that Willow and Xander do. And I agreed."

Giles stared uncomprehending for several moments before he sighed, rolled his eyes, and then started cleaning his glasses in an agitated manner. "Buffy, I…I understand about the lack of discretion involved in this case, but…"

"We're not just going to sit by and do nothing while Buffy is out there, alone, risking her life for all of ours and the rest of the world!" Cordelia, of all people was the one to shout and interrupt the Watcher.

Giles stared, stunned by the display of passion by the absolute last human being he expected on the planet to say such a thing. A small clue pieced together in his mind to the whole picture. "Would this happen to be a side effect from…er, last night?" he asked.

"Probably," Cordelia answered, sitting back down.

"That's not the only thing," Oz pointed out as he stood up. "Amy?"

Amy nodded and got to her feet. They stepped out and away from the table a bit, and then suddenly, they both fell into familiar looking martial arts stances, and then began to spar on a skill level to match, if not rival Buffy when she practiced against Giles.

They only did a few moves, but enough with enough complexity that Giles, and all the others were convinced that a conviction to fight demons wasn't the only thing left behind by Ethan's spell.

"Oh my…" Giles was too stunned at this realization to do much more than stare.

"Cool!" Xander drawled, his eyes wide and eager, like it was Christmas.

Buffy however suddenly looked nervous. "OK…maybe I might have been a bit premature in my decision," she said, causing the newcomers to look just as nervous. "About the rules that is. I'm not saying everyone joins me on patrol and whatever, but…"

"It's OK Buffy, we get it," Amy said as she and Oz rejoined those at the table. Buffy just smiled and nodded gratefully.

"So…you all retain all of the martial arts knowledge you had as…as…" Giles stuttered to say.

"Power Rangers?" Willow finished for him. Unable to say it himself, he nodded.

They all answered in the affirmative.

"And you wanna know what's so funny about that G-man?" Xander asked without really asking. "According to our "Slayer Ranger memories"… _you're_ the one that taught us those martial arts."

"Uh…really?"

"Yeah," Cordelia added to the conversation. "Not to mention I think I'm a better gymnast than Buffy is now."

"Hey!"

"Well, sorry, but I think it's true."

"No, it's…it's OK, it's just that…I think I know where you're going with this," the Slayer stood up and seemed to think heavily on the idea for a moment before turning to her Watcher and saying what was on all of the group's mind.

"Giles, what if you started to train all of us, for real?" she asked.

The Watcher stared for a moment before he began to sputter. Before he could raise arguments, Buffy continued, "No, I'm serious Giles! Look, I probably should have done this from the beginning when I met Xander and Willow, but I was too caught up in not wanting to be the Slayer. If they're going to help, and even if I told them not to I think they might anyway, they should have the best chances at defending themselves against vampires as they can."

"We're not about to go out and start hunting them ourselves G-man," Xander added to the argument, "but for when we are attacked, wouldn't it be better for us to be able to defend ourselves enough that we get the chance to run away? Martial arts goes a long way towards that end, especially against stronger opponents."

They all nodded in agreement with Xander.

Giles sighed again and started cleaning his glasses, again. "You're not going to give this up, are you?" he asked. He got a group shaking of the heads, and then Willow brought out the Resolve Face. He sighed again. "I'll think about it," he finally said. "Everyone show up here after school and, we'll set something up."

Just then the bell rang, "Now get to class, all of you. I'll see you all later, I trust?"

"Yep!" they all said, smiling like the teenagers they were as they gathered their things and scampered off to their first period classes. Giles, looking after them, couldn't help but notice that Willow and Oz kept looking at each other and blushing each time one of them was caught, and then the even more amazing sight of Cordelia holding Xander's hand as they left the Library.

"Good lord! I need a drink!"

_Sunnydale High School: Cordelia's Math Class_

It was just that afternoon, about an hour after Lunch, and even though it had only been for the morning, the rumor that Cordelia Chase and Xander Harris were dating was already burning the mill.

"It's not true, is it?" were the first words out of Harmony Kendall's mouth at the first moment Cordelia had seen her all day. It was somewhat surprising since the two were normally like Dorothy and Toto. Guess who the dog was in Cordelia's mind.

"Is what true?" Cordelia absently asked as she started going over her homework. She and Harmony were in Algebra class, quite easily the dullest yet at the same time easiest class given at Sunnydale High. The teacher was an old, senile man that seemed lose his glasses on the top of his head more times than Giles cleaned his. And Cordelia was excellent at Math.

"You and Harris!" Harmony fumed. "It's not true. Right? I mean, Aura said that Larry said that he heard Parker say to Gemini that you and he were like holding hands and making eyes at each other this morning when you were coming out of the Library. Of course I immediately told her that you would never be seen near the Library, well except maybe to like exchange your books or something and…"

"Harmony would you just shut up for one minute!" Cordelia snapped. Luckily the teacher was not in the room. Not even he would have ignored that. The rest of the students present certainly didn't.

Harmony looked hurt for all of two seconds, telling Cordelia that it was faked and inside the blonde was seething, and then it was replaced by mock-horror. "Omigawd! It's true, isn't it!"

"I'm not dating anyone at the moment," Cordelia honestly answered. "And it would take a lot more than rumors or 'eyes' and hand holding to make me even consider dating Harris of all people at this school. A lot more." Cordelia stopped talking and thought to herself, _'Lucky me that he does have more. A _WHOLE_ lot more.'_ She recalled last night, seeing him in action as the White Ranger, and even before that, as nothing but the Slayerette.

Maybe she could do something to start to turn Xander's reputation around. Get him involved with one of the sports. The Swim Team was doing well this year, and so was the Basketball team, but that one wasn't very likely. Suddenly she remembered that Sunnydale High had a Martial Arts club. Had only about four members and the Gym coach supervising it, but…

"So what was the deal? Cause Gemini swore that…"

"I had to go on the stupid safety program last night and Xander helped pull me out of a jam during the riots last night. And I needed to get a book from Mister Giles. For a book report." Cordelia answered.

"Uh huh. What is up with that creepy librarian anyway, I mean he…" Harmony was saying, but stopped suddenly when she saw the look on Cordelia's face. Lucky for the blonde that right at that moment the teacher walked in and started the class. Also lucky was that the two High School debutants were not sitting anywhere close to each other either.

_Sunnydale High School: Outer Walkway_

Harmony, by all measurable accounts had completely forgotten about the incident in Math class earlier and was talking avidly about some boy that had almost asked her out. Some frat guy that Cordy knew the Fraternity of, but only knew the guy by the car he drove. She was cursing herself for her shallowness, but with all their other "friends" around, the leader of the Cordettes couldn't help but be excited for Harmony over this chance.

Just as Harmony was explaining how she had almost gotten asked out, as they were turning the corner in front of the stairs in the courtyard, Xander had just finished walking down the stairs and saw the group and tried to avoid them, but Harmony still ended up walking right into him.

"Watch it!" Harmony screeched as she was interrupted in her gloating. Xander stepped back, his face immediately apologetic, until he caught Cordelia's eyes and was like a deer caught in the high beams for a minute.

"Sorry," he apologized.

"Gawd," Harmony drawled insultingly, "You know I'm glad you're mom isn't working at the drive-thru long enough to dress you!"

Xander frowned, only slightly hurt by the remark because he knew he couldn't, and wouldn't, retaliate against Harmony. Cordelia was another story. Harmony…sometimes he wondered if the only thing that said she wasn't a vampire was her ability to walk in direct sunlight.

Suddenly the blonde ditz brightened and turned back to Cordelia saying, "Oh! That reminds me; did you see Jennifer's backpack? It is so…"

"Harmony, shut up!" Cordelia snapped angrily.

Xander stopped in his retreat and turned back to look on with surprise clearly etched into his features, but some brotherly pride mixed in there too. Harmony was too stunned to do anything other than shut up.

"You know what you are Harmony?" Cordelia asked her angrily, "You're a sheep!"

"I'm not a sheep," Harmony whined.

"You're a sheep! All you do is what everyone else does just so you can say you did it first! And for the longest time, there I was scrambling for your approval when I'm _way_ cooler than you because I'm not a sheep. I do what I want to do, and I wear what I want to wear. And you know what? I'll date whoever the hell I want to date."

Xander, looking on, couldn't help but smile as his Cordelia finally stood up to those simpletons that had tried to control her life. His face fell as he thought, _'Where the hell did _that_ come from? She's her own woman, not _**my**_ anything. Not yet, at least.'_

"No matter how lame you _think_ he is! Rumors be damned!" Cordelia then huffed off, right in Xander's direction. He smiled comfortingly at her, and held out his hand. Staring for a second, she slowly took it, smiling as their fingers knotted together of their own accord.

They walked off together, both of them smiling. For about five steps.

"Oh god! Oh god! Oh god!" Queen C started to hyperventilate.

Xander brought their hands up and patted her supportively. "It's OK, just keep walking," he advised.

"Oh god, what have I done? They're never going to speak to me again," she began to ramble.

"Oh sure they are," Xander assured her. "If it helps, whenever they're around, you and I can fight allot."

Cordelia smiled impishly at her new boyfriend. How did he always know the right things to say? "You promise?"

"Can pretty much count on it," Xander admitted with a bit of a grimace, but keeping up the supportive aura. They kept on walking, heading to the Library, Cordelia smiling brightly, and Xander had the look of a guy that had just gotten everything he ever asked for, and the one thing he really needed.

_Inside Cordelia's Purse_

Unseen and unnoticed by anyone, at the moment the newest _official_ Slayerette stood up to her "flock of sheep", the coin that Xander had given to her, which she had kept close to her even as she slept, glowed a brief rainbow of colors before returning to a soft pinkish glow for the duration of the conflict before fading away as she and Xander walked away.

The coin in Xander's back pocket, in Amy, Buffy, and Willow's purses, and Oz's pick-case, a similar phenomenon happened at the exact same moment to their individual coins that they also had kept close. The flash of rainbow colors, before each settled on a specific and individual color.

And on the higher spiritual planes, several powerful entities watched with pleasure. The Chosen Ones had been forged.

ROLL END CREDITS 


	50. Aphrodisiac NC17

Title: Aphrodisiac

Author: The Evil Guy

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon came up with all the characters of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Aphrodite the goddess is pure myth, but Renaissance and Rob Tapert created the "image" portrayed by actress Alexandra Tyding, which is the only crossover for this fic.

Warning: This fic is rated NC-17, and I'm half tempted to make that 18. The title alone should tell you that this is ENTIRELY smut. Xander-smut, but still all the same, total porn fic. I don't care if you have your own porn collection and a weekly subscription to Penthouse, Playboy, AND Hustler, if you're 16 or younger, YOU DO NOT, CANNOT READ THIS FANFIC! I refuse to contribute to the delinquency for minors, and I am *going* to ask A. Grandt if it is possible to put a Parental Lock, of sorts, on all the NC-17 stories for the XanderZone Archive. Most especially for THIS one!

Background: Set in Season 6 before the Geeks actually became a problem. Slight revision; Joyce Summers did not die of an aneurysm, instead the surgery was a complete success and she is still alive and in the Scoobies lives. Just basically take out all the money-troubles, and put Joyce right there beside Willow in resurrecting Buffy. Yes, Buffy died stopping Glory, yes she was revived, in her coffin, underground, and yes, she's depressed because she *thinks* she was ripped out of Heaven. Personally, I'm sticking with 3D Master's version of that and saying that she was stuck in some kind of 'pleasure dimension' by an insane and evil goddess, maybe Jasmine, and eventually she will get over it, and this is also before she starts kissing and fucking Spike. Xander and Anya are engaged, Willow and Tara are still together, Willow's getting a little careless but there hasn't been a fight yet. Oh, and Buffy still needs a job despite there not being a financial crisis. I am running with the assumption that when Dawn showed up in Season 5, she was 16 years old and her birthday is during the Summer, so by now she is 17 years old. Ironically, the same age her sister lost her virginity to a 200-year-old vampire. Also, one last addendum; this is now more of a "Xander gets a harem" fic, kinda like in B&S, just without the jokes. And I like Buffy.

Summary: Another 'Xander gets a power' fic. Minor crossover with the Herc/Xena verse, but ONLY in the prologue. Xander's Mother, capital M, finally reveals herself to him and gives him the gifts that are his birthright. Gifts of the gods. NC-17

Prologue

"Oh yes! Yes! Yes, Xander, just like that, oh YES!" Anya cried out between moans as Xander thrust deeply inside her, pawing at her breast with one hand while the other held the small of her back to ensure that the ex-demon didn't throw him off. Anya's cries of encouragement fell into a high squeal of pleasure when the young brunette male latched onto her remaining breast with his mouth and drew the nipple between his lips, and then his teeth.

Most of these 'techniques', Xander called them that in his mind, were things that Anya had taught him just by the way she reacted to them while they were making love. Well, initially it had just been "sex" but after she agreed to marry him it most definitely became "making love".

A few other things that he was doing to her, like the way he rotated his hips and put his knees right inside of hers while he held her, that was learned stuff. Not totally from books, or the internet, or talk with the guys at the construction yard, but it was definitely more than going on instinct and being guided by your lover.

For example, this allowed him maximum leverage for mid-range thrust, allowing his cock to not only rub back and forth over her clitoris, but to do the same over her g-spot and combined with how worked up Xander had gotten her before they even got this far, he knew that Anya was going to be in a very nice mood in the morning. She always was when he gave her nice orgasms.

He accelerated his pumping for about two or three thrusts, which sent Anya very close to the edge, but when he slowed back down to get a slightly better grip, she was pulled back suddenly, and then forced back to the edge, a little further when he simultaneously bit at her nipple and pulled the flesh back, stretching her breast, pinched her other nipple with his hand, and slid his other hand holding her, down a couple inches until his pinky finger could enter her asshole, and at least halfway as well.

The combination of all the sensations, pain, pleasure, feeling something going up her ass, it soon became too much for Anya and through it all, Xander was still pounding into her, harder and faster than ever. Xander had after all fucked her up the ass before, but only about three times, and always at her insistence, but because she could barely sit for three days afterwards he was always reluctant to have anal sex. But she always loved it. She loved Xander's cock in any of her holes, but anything up her ass while he was fucking her, even if it was only a blowjob, she always came and came hard.

Xander felt the familiar, warm clenching around his cock, which meant that Anya was cumming. Of course her screaming in his ear that she was cumming was also a good sign. He removed his finger, and for safety sake let go of her breasts, moving his other hand down to her hips to help steady her as she writhed beneath him, but he still kept pumping into her. That was something that Anya was always, a little too much sometimes, but always adamant about. That he always had to come, no matter what, otherwise she was doing something wrong, and she would make a lot of noise about it tomorrow.

Unfortunately, despite Xander's focus on his fiancé, he failed to notice that while his motions continued, and even increased, Anya had reached her orgasm limit and passed out from the pleasure, going limp and her eyes closing after the biggest orgasm she had ever had in ALL of her life, human and demon, passed.

Despite this, Xander continued towards his own pleasure, because as he already knew, if he didn't come then Anya would be furious, despite passing out from an orgasm come the marrow.

Only a few seconds after Anya had passed out though, Xander froze. All movement stopped, even his breathing. His awareness was quickly diminishing along with his capability for motion, and after a few more seconds where everything in the bedroom remained so still that one could have said that time itself had stopped, a new figure appeared in the bedroom, in the fashion of pink light and gold sparkles accompanied by a chime of bells. Silver bells from the tone.

The darkness of the night receded a bit, showing the naked, frozen, still-fucking couple, and a tall, buxom, blonde woman wearing a pink nightie with a flowered demi-cup bra, which just barely encased her soft white d-cup breasts, and a flower-print thong panties. On her feet she simply wore 6-inch pink stiletto heel pumps.

Her blue eyes briefly traveled over the couple, taking in every feature, both male and female, as well as position and even their expressions. She snorted and rolled her eyes as she could tell that Anya was now unconscious, however she stared, perhaps a little longingly, at the look of love and immense sexual pleasure on Xander's face.

With a sigh, she stepped forward, closer to the bed and leaned in towards the male, although touching neither him nor the bed. She fondly wiped several beads of sweat from his brow, and of course he didn't even move.

"Oh my precious little boy," Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love said with a note of forlornness in her voice. "You're just like your big brother Cupid, just without the wings. Now what am I going to do with you?"

She pouted her lips and touched the finger she had used to wipe his brow to her chin in a thoughtful pose. She glanced back down at the unconscious Anya and snorted again in derision. With a flick of her wrist, Anya was immediately teleported to the floor beside the bed, leaving Xander, still frozen, in place on the bed, in all of his naked glory.

Aphrodite's eyes widened briefly in appreciation of the parts that had been hidden from her eyes before. "Now I'm beginning to see what could make a nymphomaniac like Anya here actually pass out," she muttered to herself. Then she sighed once more. "Well, I certainly can't leave you like that, so what should I do, huh? Well duh goddess!" she said more to herself, seeing as Xander didn't even know she was there.

With a simple tug here, a pull there, and unclasping, all the clothes Aphrodite was wearing slid smoothly and quietly to the floor revealing the most perfect female body, for sex, ever.

With another flick of her hand, Aphrodite herself was teleported into Anya's _exact position_, or previous position anyway. Wiggling her hips a little to get used to the feeling, Aphrodite giggled a little and then exerted her power one last time to give her the face, and hair, of Anya. Everything else she left alone. Wasn't every century that a normal mortal man got to sample the goddess of love's charms.

A moment later, time started back up and Xander resumed his motions at the same pace that he'd been frozen at. Aphrodite gasped and smiled to herself. At this pace, and considering everything else he'd done tonight, this shouldn't take too much longer.

Xander almost, _almost_, stopped what he was doing. One second Anya had been coming down from her orgasm, and then she had fallen back, almost limp in his arms. And practically the very next second he almost said he was fucking an entirely different woman.

For starters, her cunt was gripping him in all exactly the right places, like her entire passage was a silk glove made and tailored specifically for his cock alone. Next, Anya's skin had been slick with perspiration for almost half an hour now, but the skin he rubbed up against now was smooth and felt like living porcelain, but it was not slick. Then there was the fact that Anya's breasts seemed to have suddenly grown a couple cup sizes.

Half a moment, and five more strokes later, Xander felt like something had just flitted through or brushed his mind, but he let the sensation pass and resumed making love to his fiancé. He couldn't even recall the memory of any thought that said he was with a different woman any more.

One thing he did notice though was that 'Anya' seemed to have already completely recovered from her last orgasm and was ready for another. Goal in mind, and knowing he could finish himself after guaranteeing a *very* happy Anya for a couple more days, Xander brought out his "heavy guns" so to speak.

He leaned up and captured her mouth in a passionate kiss, both their mouths opening for a more intimate pleasure. His hands slowly moved up her shapely body to her breasts where they both started to tweak and roll and play with her nipples, eliciting gasping moans from her.

Aphrodite was impressed; her boy sure did know his stuff.

Still pumping, and working to hit her g-spot every time, Xander worked one of his legs over 'Anya's' while keeping the other still on the bed and between her legs. He began to add a little extra thrust to each of his inward strokes, and pressed down hard on her clit on the down stroke, while his fingers began to pinch her nipples a little and he worked his palms and overall hands to move and mash her breasts in a rotating pattern. Ending the kiss, and gasping a little himself to get a little extra breath into him, Xander continued to kiss and nibble along her jaw line all the way to her earlobe.

Aphrodite was very impressed and began to work a little of her own magic. So far she had just matched his thrusts with a welcoming grip of her vaginal muscles, but now, on his upstroke she gripped him as tightly as she could and kept up the pressure as he slowly withdrew. The sensation for the both of them was near maddening.

Her hands had mostly stayed on his hips for most of this, but now she began to stroke his side with her right hand and she slowly moved her left hand along the spine of his back. Vertebrae by vertebrae.

Xander couldn't believe what he was feeling. The sensations 'Anya's' ministrations were giving him were so intense he felt even hotter. As they kept up this pace for another few minutes, and when 'Anya' had reached the apex of his back and neck, he felt as if a fire had been lit inside of him.

He abandoned her earlobe and almost growling with his lust, he surged back to her lips for a far more savage kiss than before. One of his hands left her breast, the other intensifying it's already rough motions, and grabbed her hair, yanking, but not really pulling on the blonde locks.

Aphrodite gasped in pleasure and gave an appreciative "squeeze" at his actions, and couldn't stop the moan that boiled up out of her when such squeezing allowed Xander's cock to hit a particularly sensitive spot. She weaved her own fingers through his hair and grabbed his head the same way he had hers and her other hand moved up to his neck and began to move and massage it's way down his spine as the other had climbed it.

Xander couldn't take much more of this, he was sure of it. He was, after all only human, but with 'Anya' clenching him so tightly, and what she was doing with her hands, not to mention the overall _feel_ of her, his arousal and 'need' had intensified so much he knew he could at least finish her off with him.

She knew when she was wrong, and this was one of the few times Aphrodite was glad she was wrong, as she counted off over ten minutes since she had started fucking Xander in Anya's place and he _still_ hadn't come. In fact he was getting damn close to making _her_ come!

Aphrodite certainly wasn't a stranger with the joys and pleasures of sex. She often reveled in them just for the sake of having a good time. Usually, and most often, with her husband Hephaestus. But it was a very, _very_ rare mortal that could make _her_, the goddess of love, have an orgasm that could really be called an _*orgasm*_.

And right now she was well on her way to having an _*orgasm*_.

Xander broke the kiss and moved the hand on her breast back down to the small of her back and double-timed his thrusts. Her breasts were heaving, jiggling up and down in time with his thrusts. So it was a bit of work, but he managed to catch one of them by the nipple with his mouth and began suckling on it with all the pressure his lungs could provide.

She took that back, she wasn't on the way to having an _*orgasm*_, she was _HAVING_ an _*orgasm*_!

Xander felt that fire in him begin to build, higher and higher, hotter and hotter, until it felt like the blood pumping through his body was in fact fire and his internal organs were the fuel being consumed by it. His cock throbbed and it felt like it was getting bigger as 'Anya's' pussy clamped tighter and tighter around him.

Aphrodite began to worry a little, her hand about ¾ of the way down his back, because it felt like Xander's cock was growing harder inside her, despite him already being fully hardened.

Two seconds, and ten thrusts later, she no longer wondered because she was sure. Xander's cock was growing bigger, and it was actually stretching her, getting longer and always being pulled out and shoved back in to the hilt to nearly it's full length. And every second it was grinding her clit back into her body, and it was driving it's shaft all along her g-spot.

Xander was already an impressive girth, and length, but now, as he kept getting bigger inside her, thrusting and pleasuring her, it was getting to where even Aphrodite would swoon at just the sight of it. At the feel of it, it was soon too much even for her.

The fire in him was all consuming, and he knew that after it had consumed him, it would spread and with this realization his movements became frantic. His hands came with bruising force and he pulled her hair that were it any other situation it would have hurt, and he bit down savagely on her nipple in his mouth.

The pain of his frantic movements was all the stimulation she needed, it somehow electrified the pleasure she was receiving and at the final moment before she went over the cliff and surpassed her climax, Aphrodite's hand hit the last bundle of nerves at the base of Xander's spine, forcing him to come like a rocket.

The fire blazed as it consumed the last of him and escaped his dried husk in a stream that poured forth like Niagara Falls, forcing his cock to throb one last time. The fire passed quickly, leaving a deep, loving and cooling cold where it had been, but there was so much of it that it did not pass all at once. He stayed conscious long enough to feel the familiar pressure around his cock and hear the passionate, pleasure-filled cries of his lover, before he passed out from pleasure overload himself. His head fell softly, landing between the two mountains of pillowy softness of his true mother's breasts.

Xander's dream

It was a very confusing feeling, making love and feeling all that stimulation all at once, and then bam, just like that you're asleep and dreamy like you were floating on a cloud. The only thing that wasn't confusing about his dream, and the difference from the real world, was that he was naked.

Until he actually thought about being naked in a dream, then it too became confusing. Especially when he realized that he was thinking like he was awake . . . in a dream.

"OK, much as I love a wet dream as much as the next evil-hating, demon-killing, research boy, friend to the Slayer, this one ain't exactly normal I'm betting," he said aloud.

"Well, the confused babbling aside, you're pretty much on target there tiger," a melodic voice sounded from just beyond his perception.

Other than being naked, he was standing in a very white place. It kind of reminded him of the Construct program in the movie "The Matrix". Except without the people watching him on computer monitors feel. Until that voice had spoken of course.

Suddenly he could see her, and there was no doubt in his mind that it was a her.

A six-foot very beautiful and very full-figured blonde wearing panties, a demi-cup bra, and a pink silk nightie over all that, walked on clicking pink heels out of the nothingness, straight at him. If only he had recognized her from his memories, he would have called this the absolute perfect wet dream.

"Who are you? What are you doing in my dream? And what do you want with me?" he demanded, switching from lust-crazed male to untrusting, but still confident (after all beautiful women he could handle, demons got to see the running in terror part of him) Slayerette. (Beautiful women who were or are actual demons were another matter, but again he could handle that.)

Aphrodite stopped a couple of paces away from him and smiled at him, showing her dimples and how she looked with a smile on her face. His wariness lowered a little, but his posture and the stare that said he didn't trust her remained unwavering. She sighed with regret. This was going to take a little longer than she had hoped for.

"I'm Aphrodite Xander," she said in a soft tone, her melodic voice begging him to trust her. He didn't move, waiting for the rest of her answers.

"I'm here to . . . to tell you something and explain a few things. And . . . I want you to be happy . . . my son."

Xander jerked back at the last two words, stunned. At first all he could do was blink in surprise and confusion, but being a Slayerette quickly got him passed the numb silence and back into questioning mode.

"Wait a sec here, just-just wait a sec!" he shouted. "Son!"

Aphrodite nodded, tears brimming at the edge of her eyes.

"It, it's kind of a long story, but here goes," Aphrodite began to explain. "Your mother is the descendant of one of the last of my priestesses. You do get the whole goddess of love thing, right?"

"Yeah, after dealing with Glory and all the other demon and prophecy research stuff, knowing who the Greek gods were is pretty much a given," Xander sarcastically commented.

Aphrodite smiled, he got his sense of humor from her obviously.

"Anyway, your mom is like the great, great, great, great granddaughter or something like that of my High Priestess Sappho. I've been watching over her family ever since Sappho died like 2000 years ago. Then, out of the blue one day, your mom actually calls to me, apparently she found some old family relic that is one of the things my priestesses used to pray to me with. The reason she called for me, she's barren. Can't have kids."

"Now normally that's my aunt's department, Hestia being like goddess of midwives or something, but I figured, she called, I can answer. So . . . I did. Sort of. I like did a mini possession type deal. Basically for about 10 months I *was* your mom, but she was still there. I changed what needed to be changed in her body so she could safely have children, and then I got busy on working up her husband."

"I suddenly sense an enormous 'but' coming," Xander commented.

Aphrodite grimaced with distaste.

"An old ex of mine, _Ares_ god of war heard about what I was doing. I'm not sure when, but at some point he possessed your father the same way that I possessed your mother. Good thing was it was only for one night. The night you were conceived." Aphrodite told him.

Xander blinked, not sure what to say to that. And for whatever reason beyond him, he believed her, and he knew she was telling the truth.

"So what does that . . ." he started to ask.

"Oh, don't worry, Ares didn't have enough time to change your father physically the way I did your mother. Otherwise, things would have been a lot more complicated than they already are." She sighed and hugged herself, which seemed to have the side effect of increasing her bust and almost forcing her nipples out of the bra. Xander gulped and struggled to remain focused on h . . . on his mother's face.

"Because *I* basically conceived and carried you for the pregnancy, you have a portion, just enough genes as they say, of godhood in you. If Ares had changed your father, then that would have been enough 'portion' to turn you into a demi-god and from the way Herc's life went, I think you should be counting your blessings that your life was like it was. Cause being a demi-god brings a whole boatload of problems that would have made your childhood seem idyllic."

Xander doubted that, but took her word for it. For the moment.

"So . . . what does this mean for me with just your . . . genes thrown into the mix?" he asked.

Aphrodite sighed again, which gave her an even more impressive bust for a moment. "Well, here's where you might start to get upset . . ." she trailed off.

Xander took a step forward, her words instantly drawing his attention away from her body and his growing lust. "What could possibly get me upset at the moment?" he asked her testily.

Frowning, which showed off her cute dimples, Aphrodite looked her son in the eye and told him the truth. "Just now, before you passed out, that wasn't Anya. That was me. Anya passed out after that last orgasm you gave her, and you were still . . ." she stopped when she saw the look on his face.

"What did you do with her?" he growled.

"Nothing! I swear in Zeus' name! I just took her place. No possession either. She's still sleeping on the floor, but when you wake up in the morning, she'll be cuddled up right next to you in bed, I promise." Aphrodite spoke quickly to abate his anger.

Xander took a few calming breaths, pacing around the white space of his dream a little before facing his mother again. "OK, I'm cool now. By the way, I'm sure you Greek people have no problem with it, but didn't what we just did . . . wasn't that incest?"

Aphrodite snorted. "Gods don't worry about genomes and shit like that Xander-baby. Besides, technically, the woman in your old house going by the name Mrs. Harris is your biological mother. I'm just the mom that had her hand in the decision that conceived you. If you know what I mean."

Xander just nodded, his mind racing as he tried to take all this in.

"Look, why I brought up the whole sex thing that we just did . . . well, normally it doesn't happen, I mean there aren't very many mortals that can actually give me, well, uh, lets just say that only my hubby can compare with you my little man."

"You're MARRIED?" Xander shouted, panicking.

"Chill out! It's not that big a deal, Hephy knows about my tiny little flings. And while he's good, and a god, he can only keep up with me for so long. He lets me go out with a couple of mortals, or have a one-night stand with a guy, or girl, every century or two. And he'll understand about this too. But let me finish first, all right?"

Xander, gulping, nodded.

"Good. All right then. Because you made me cum, and partially because of having that portion of godhood, you sort of get a gift. Although there have been nice guys that called it a curse, but I think you can handle it." Aphrodite was giggling now, her eyes glazed over in memory.

Xander, glaring now, cleared his throat rather loudly to get her back on track.

"Oh, right, where was I?"

"My gift aka curse?" Xander suggested.

"Oh, right. Duh goddess!" Aphrodite cleared her thoughts and straightened her face. "Because of that whole Goddess of Love thing it ain't exactly easy for mortal men to hit all the right buttons, but since you did, and along with that portion of power your body now has . . . well I wouldn't call it a 'power' but more like your body's been changed. You now give off what mortals call a pheromone that will attract just about every genetically compatible female within 'range' to you. Your range could be considered anywhere inside whatever room you're in if you're indoors, and about five to ten feet out doors, depending on how windy it is I guess."

Xander stared for a few moments, trying to translate what he'd been told with an old copy of what he called 'Cordy-speak'. Finally, he figured out the approximate translation.

"So when you say attract . . .?" he asked.

Aphrodite smirked, "I mean they'll practically be pawing you, and each other, just to get in your pants. For strangers it would probably be like wolf whistles or women walking up to you giving you their number. For people that you're around a lot, especially the girls . . ."

"What? What?" he wanted to know.

"Remember that love spell a few years back?" she gave him the hint.

Xander's eyes went wide and he started to back away in horror.

"No, no, no, no, no, nothing like that, well, I mean they aren't going to *love* you. This is all lust. They'll just really, really, really, _really, __***really***_ want you. This is a pheromone, and that's only going to affect their hormones and make 'em horny like crazy, and it'll also direct that horniness at you, but they'll be able to control themselves . . . if they can control their hormones at all that is." Aphrodite quickly explained.

Xander calmed down a little, but it would still greatly worry him. Anya he didn't worry about. Her hormones were already off the scale and all directed at him already. But Willow, Buffy, Mrs. Summers, Tara! _Dawn_! That might just be a little too much female attention. Especially coming from Mrs. Summers. Again.

"Is there anyway to like . . . turn this pheromone thing off, at least to a couple people in particular?" he practically begged.

Aphrodite winced in sympathy, but shook her head to the negative. "That's the downside. No off-switch. But."

"But?" he repeated, with hope in his voice.

Aphrodite smiled again, "But that's only because of the sex thing. I can still give you another gift, one that I was going to give you anyway since it seemed to work so well for one of my other boys. This gift can help you to, well I guess the best way to put it is to control the reactions of those around you."

"I'm listening," Xander answered.

"I, Aphrodite, goddess of love, hereby bestow to you, Alexander Love-All Harris, my son, the gift of Obedience." After she intoned this, the white space was briefly lit up with a bright red and pink glow, which then settled on Xander himself, and he felt something enter him and become a part of him. Something that he knew couldn't be removed except by Zeus, King of the Gods, himself.

"What's that mean?" Xander asked after all the special effects had gone.

Aphrodite grinned. "My time's almost up. But the Gift of Obedience isn't quite what it sounds like. What it does is, everybody around you, or at least everyone that you tell to do something, whether through your voice, or by writing it down, or even by leaving a message on their voice mail, they have to obey you. They won't even question what they're doing. They'll just think it was their idea, whether you tell them to think that or not. That's another thing, you can tell someone what to think, but only for a little bit of time, and only while they're around you unless you can think of some loopholes."

"For example," Aphrodite smiled as she said this, "I know you're worried about Mrs. Summers and your pheromone thing. All you have to do now is order her to not be physically attracted to you or something along those lines, and no matter how much you're around her, she won't respond to the pheromone thing. Cool huh?"

Xander grinned, nodding, "Definitely cool."

Aphrodite suddenly looked behind her. "Sorry," she sounded sad, "My time's up. I, I've got to go now."

Xander felt a pang of sympathy for this goddess that he now knew had watched over him for all of his life. He couldn't just let her go with only a conversation, and if she was to be believed a good fuck also.

Before she could turn and walk off, Xander stepped forward and embraced her in a loving hug. A naked loving hug, but it was the thought that counted he figured. "I . . . I know we just met and all that, but . . . thanks for everything, and thank you for watching over me . . . Mom."

The tears that the goddess of love had been exerting godhood power in preventing finally spilled over with a cry of loving relief at Xander's words. She hugged him back and nearly squeezed the life out of him, but he wasn't hugging any less hard. "I love you my precious Xander-baby," she murmured into his ear.

All at once, Xander remembered several key moments in his life, where he had been the hero, inspired on by the feeling in his heart. He knew, beyond all doubt in that moment that in those moments, his mother, Aphrodite goddess of love, had truly been with him. Who was he kidding, only just met her? He had known her since before he was born, and all through his childhood, and most especially when he was helping to save the world with Buffy and his friends.

"I love you too Mom," he whispered. But he had already woken up. The sun was spilling in from the curtains, and Anya, his _real_ fiancé, was spooned in his arms and they both lay beneath the covers in their bedroom.

Confused, and briefly wondering if the dream really had been just a dream, Xander sat up in bed, slowly untangling himself from Anya as he did so.

Unfortunately his movements woke Anya up herself, but he hoped that the fantastic sex last night hadn't been a dream also, since he couldn't remember getting beneath the covers after they were done.

"Umm," Anya moaned as she stretched, enticing Xander's eyes to roam over her very nude body. "G'morning Xander," she grumbled, kissing his shoulder as she sat up herself.

"Mornin' Ahn," he whispered back, kissing her forehead.

"Oh, you were so good last night Xander, I think I might have actually passed out!" Anya started to giggle a little, but then took three very deep breaths, the last more a sniff in his direction. "Wow, you smell so good!"

She started to kiss him a little more lovingly, and then her hands started to roam all over his body as his eyes had hers several moments before. "Xander…" kiss "…do you wanna…?" she asked as she kissed her way slowly up to his mouth.

_'So much for it just being a dream,'_ he thought as he willingly went back into the waiting arms of his lover.

END Prologue


	51. Quantum Possibilities: Hope

Title: QUANTUM: Possibilities

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Buffy and all related characters belong to and were created by Joss Whedon. The concept of multiple realities however is public knowledge and scientific theory at BEST. In fact, not even theory as no evidence YET exists to prove or disprove. Any other characters, while based on other fictions or real people, are not copied from said other fictions or the actual real people. They are fictional representations of my own imagination and I stand to make no profit of my own from this fic and if any, people who own or are represented in this fiction should be honored, not offended. If you are, I'll change it, just contact me with either critique or criticism at .. Also, so many people have rewritten this opening scene for so many fanfics, I DON'T CARE IF ITS BEEN USED BEFORE, I WROTE/DESRCIBED IT THIS WAY, BUT JOSS WHEDON OR WHOEVER ACTUALLY WROTE THE SCENE!

Spoilers for "The Gift". And lots of others, I'm not naming them all. Seasons 1-6. And maybe a few books.

Also to note, this in itself is an alternate universe, as if it were the TV verse, then I'd be getting sued for copyright infringement. Timeline: Right after Buffy jumped into the portal the Key opened. Rather than fall through it and to her death however, Buffy fell into the portal as though it were an actual portal. But it still closed. Before this point, yes, identical to the TV verse.

Summary: Buffy, after sacrificing herself to save all, finds out about all the different possibilities her life could have had, if she had only made a few different choices, or if others had.

'_Italics'_ are thoughts.

"Quotes" are speech.

Less and Greater signs are telepathy.

[Brackets] are locations, aka universes.

[The Untouched Universe]

_2 weeks later_

_The Magic Box_

"You're kidding me!" Buffy squealed as she listened to her double's story. "The love spell Xander had Amy cast actually _*worked*_? On my world Cordelia was the _only_ one not affected. Xander had every female in Sunnydale jones-ing for his bod, me included. Oh my gawd, I'm just grateful he didn't let me take off that raincoat."

"Raincoat?" Xander piped up, suddenly interested.

"Don't ask," Buffy fixed the male with a Slayer glare.

"It was a weird week, I'll tell you that. Especially all that Cordelia did after Xander humiliated her publicly, several times, to win him back. When the spell finally wore off, nobody even noticed until Cordy…" Buffy01 was saying when Xander suddenly shot forward and put his hand physically over the Slayer's mouth.

"Uh… let's not go there," he pleaded.

"I wore _nothing_ but a rain coat and _begged_ Xander to undress me. Then Amy showed up, turned me into a rat, and when she turned me back, I was naked in the cellar, where Oz was looking for me… and found me," Buffy supplied, a definite pink hue to her cheeks.

Xander stared for about three seconds before sighing dejectedly and releasing Buffy01's mouth and moping back to his chair. Buffy01 smiled. "It was two weeks after the whole love spell thing, and Cordy was still acting nice to Xander, despite everyone knowing the spell had worn off by now, and then she made like she was seducing him or something, like every time they were in public, which always got Xander… ahem, excited."

Both Buffy's smiled, almost giggling really, as what was really meant came across loud and clear. "Anyway, two weeks after it was over, Cordy invited Xander on this, and I quote, "romantic picnic, with just the two of us, the sand, and the surf." At first it was totally the real deal, romantic picnic and everything. Then… Cordy suggested they go swimming. Xander, obviously not getting it yet, points out they didn't have swimsuits. Cordy just smiled at him and then started to run for the surf, leaving a trail of clothes behind her."

"Omigawd," Buffy moaned as she finally realized what this world's Cordelia had done. She covered her eyes with her hand and groaned.

"Yep. Xander raced after her, stripping stark naked, and while he was looking for his "girlfriend" in the surf, she was on the beach in a strapless bikini, picking up all the clothes and anything Xander could have used to cover himself with. I found him on my patrol by the beach and managed to get Willow to bring him some clothes… and a camera." Finally they couldn't take anymore and started giggling endlessly.

For the past 2 weeks, Buffy had fit herself in with the alternate Scooby Gang, making it more like she was their Buffy's long lost twin sister than a stranger in need of their help. She was also getting along better with their Dawn for some reason. Maybe it was because they both knew that _she_ wasn't the younger Summer's real sister, or maybe it was because Buffy and Dawn both shared an affinity for Spike, where Dawn's older sister was as disdainful as Buffy had been when Spike had first come to them from the Initiative. Or maybe it was because this Dawn, differing from her own younger sister, was actually smart and didn't want to be a Slayer, but a witch like Willow and Tara. Which meant she was smart enough to stay _out_ of trouble. Her Dawn, she swore actually went looking for trouble on more than one occasion.

Including catching up on the differences of their histories, and comparisons on their similarities, Buffy also helped out on patrol and was better company for the hometown Slayer than Faith might have been. Buffy saw it that way anyway.

Willow, Tara, and Giles had been thoroughly focused on preparing the viewing spell for those weeks though, and therefore Buffy missed out on their company save the few times she actually tried to intercede on their work. Tara was the one to throw her out the last time.

Speaking of which, that was the other major difference, other than there being no Faith in Sunnydale. Tara's family, rather than being an old fashioned family of southern slave drivers and pounding it into their women that they were demons or part demon, like Buffy had been introduced to them by, were actually quite normal. For the 20th Century. Tara was as much a normal girl as Dawn was, except that the blonde wicca had been raised in witchcraft and magick by her mother, and realized early on that she was a lesbian.

Willow, who had been cowed by Oz rather than encouraged, a fact that made him highly unpopular among the Scooby Gang here, had been the one to dump him when she finally got enough backbone in freshman college year. No Jordy bite, no Veruca, no werewolf.

The whole story of her Willow and Oz's relationship had taken an entire night to tell, which happened over homemade mochas, ice cream, and on the Scoobs' normal video night. Tara, this world's Tara, pointed out after the story that she didn't want Willow to be with her the way she had been with this world's Oz. She wanted them to be together because they loved each other. Willow then pointed out that she never would have done what she'd done to Glory, go berserk on her and get Tara's sanity back from the Hellbitch, for Oz and that alone should tell Tara how much she loved her. Then she confirmed it by taking the blonde wicca upstairs, which then made both Buffys send Dawn to a friends house for the night, and then go over to Xander and Anya's to sleep themselves.

But as nice as everything was here, as much as it was better than her own world, Buffy still wanted to go home. It was where she belonged, she told them all, and with all its faults, it was her home. So when there was a loud 'BOOM' from the back room, where Willow, Tara, and Giles were working on the viewing spell, she was the first to get up and race to the back.

"What happened?" she shouted as soon as she stepped into the back room. The others from the front quickly arrived directly behind the dimension lost Slayer.

They were all surprised to see, when they got to the doorway, the entire backroom in shambles, and the four magic-casters covered in blackened soot and coughed, smoke coming more off their clothes than out of their mouths.

Finally, Willow had regained enough composure to answer Buffy2's demand. "It worked," she coughed, helping Tara to her feet. "We managed to enchant the mirror with a full-time viewing spell. Unfortunately…"

"It follows people, not places, and it can't leave this dimension… unless the person it's been told to look in on is in another dimension and…"Anya trailed off, no longer excited about their brief success at the falling face of Buffy2.

"And only a person it's looked in on before," the lost Slayer finished, remembering that from the conversations they'd already had about the viewing spell.

"Don't worry Buffy… 2," Tara stuttered with the double Slayer thing for a moment, "We'll try again. We'll find a way to get you home. I promise."

Despite the despairing moment, Buffy smiled at the confident blonde, so different from the one she knew with the same face. "Thanks Tara. I know you will. So, lets see this baby work. I mean, least you can do is look on demons when they're making their plans now right? That's gonna come in handy for you," she added to her double.

"Wish we'd thought of doing this when Glory was still a problem," Buffy01 mumbled.

Buffy arched an eyebrow at that, and briefly berated herself for not thinking of the same thing when it would have been extremely useful in protecting her sister.

"There's a catch," Willow interrupted. Everyone in the room, save the other spell casters, all looked at her, waiting for her to continue. "First, the subject has to be in range… at least 100 kilometers."

"That's a long way. Should be useful in spying on demons," Buffy01 inserted.

"And we have to call them by full name and exact location, and th-that can be either name or longitude and latitude," Willow finished. Then, in demonstration, she pulled out the round, brass-edged mirror and sat it down on the table so they could all see it now. Everyone came in close to watch.

"Buffy Summers, the Magic Box," she said in clear, crisp voice.

Immediately, the reflective surface shimmered… then died out, leaving nothing but a mirror.

Everyone looked back up at Willow, who didn't seem that vexed about it, but Anya and Tara certainly were. "I-I don't believe it! We did everything right! It should have worked!" Tara exclaimed, outraged.

Willow then held up her hand for silence and said again, in the same tone of voice, "Elizabeth Anne Summers, the Magic Box on Main Street, Sunnydale, California, United States of America, Earth, Sol. Oh, and Milky Way."

Just as soon as Willow said the last of it, the glass shimmered as before, but rather that go back to being a mirror, it blacked out completely, and then began to move very rapidly, and everyone could see why as it was obvious the viewer, what or wherever it was, was traveling though outer space at an incredible speed. Soon, the familiar image of the Milky Way Galaxy came into focus, and it quickly zoomed in on one of the "arms", and then one of the stars. When it got close enough, they all saw that there were planets, and it was focusing on the third from the sun, Sol, and then entered the planet's atmosphere, and then they all recognized the coast of California, and before they knew it, it found the roof of the Magic Box, and when it finally stopped, it was an overhead view of Buffy2, and the rest of the group as they were standing around her.

"Whoa," the Buffys said at the same time.

"Ditto to that," Xander commented, waving his hand over Buffy2's head and watching the mirror reflect his movement at the exact same time.

Buffy2 looked up and then quickly looked back at the mirror, unfortunately not catching herself looking up at whatever was looking at her, i.e. the magic of the mirror.

Then she slowly walked away from the group, and to nearly everyone's surprise, the view followed the Slayer rather than stay where it had been, always keeping her center of the frame.

"Neat, but how come it didn't focus on me?" Buffy01 asked. Then she realized something. "Hey! My middle name isn't Anne!"

Buffy looked over at her, surprise on her face, "It isn't?"

"No, it's Maye!" the local Slayer answered back.

Buffy frowned. "But that's Dawn's middle name," she muttered.

"No it isn't, mines Merry—" the youngest Summers suddenly stopped speaking and then after a moment or two more of hesitation she finished, "Mary. My middle name is Mary."

"Uh-huh," both Buffys said sarcastically. They smiled at each other. This speaking together thing wasn't so bad when used properly. Like teasing a younger sibling. Dawn just ignored them, blushing furiously.

"I know that," Willow said calmly, smiling slightly. "That's why it focused on Buffy2 instead of our Buffy. From now on all we have to say is 'Find Elizabeth Anne Summers' and we'll immediately lock on to you. Hopefully, even in your home universe. Hey, maybe your Willow can do the same thing and we could talk to each other."

"Yeah, that would be nice, but first we have to find my home before we can send me there," Buffy remarked. "How do you turn it off?" she asked, starting to get spooked now with the mirror following her every move.

"Oh that's easy," Willow said and just touched the surface, which at the outside contact immediately reverted to reflected opposed to viewing.

"Cool," Buffy01 said. "Now how does this help us spy on demons if we have to know their exact location to even get a lock?"

Buffy shrugged and answered for Willow01, "Well, we usually fight with the Big Bad several times, you just have to know where you are when you meet up with him, and knowing its name probably wouldn't hurt either, and do the whole thing about the solar system and planet Earth and all that, and once you get that done, you can look in on it whenever you want or need to."

Buffy01's eyes lit up. "Oh, yeah I get that now. Well… even if it didn't help you, it gave us a new toy to play with. So… thanks for that."

Buffy just smiled, a bit blandly, but she did and nodded back in appreciation of her double's thanks. "No—'*'" Suddenly Buffy collapsed as a wave of disorientation unlike anything she had ever felt before gripped her. She grabbed her stomach, trying to physically urge it not to show everybody what she'd had for breakfast, and fell to her knees, her head unsure which way was up and why the floor was suddenly that way.

"Buffy!" everyone, even her double, shouted, but to her tunneling vision, it sounded very far off.

"I-I'm ooo-oh boy! I think I'm gonna puke," Buffy managed to gasp out, at first hoping to say she was ok, but with the next wave of disorientation that was no longer an option.

"I told you we shouldn't have fixed that bacon," Dawn snidely said to her sister.

"Dawn, not now! Can…uh, can you make it to the bathroom?" Buffy01 asked her double.

Buffy pushed past the disorientation to react to the question, the shock more than helping with that. "You have a bathroom?" she asked in surprise. Just then another wave hit her and she stumbled again, and Buffy01 quickly helped her to the one thing that _really_ differed about their individual _Magic Box's_.

Once she was inside, Buffy indicated that she would be all right alone for a little bit, and both of them knew that the one that wasn't sick wasn't exactly eager to see the other puke her guts out. Buffy stayed directly over the open toilet for some minutes, the disorientation varying in intensities during those minutes until finally it stopped, as though nothing had been wrong with her at all. Except something was wrong. If she had taken the time to notice when she first came into the bathroom, she would have noticed that not only were the light fixtures different, but so was the calendar hanging directly over the toilet.

TBC...?


	52. Omake 1

Title: Evil Guy Fantasies: OMAKE01

Author: The Evil Guy

Disclaimer: See Previous Chapters...

Willow Wisp:

_Box Ghost_

Willow sighed as she heard the catch phrase of what had to be the most annoying specter she'd yet come across.

"BEWARE!"

Without even bothering to transform, she zapped a green energy beam at the floating box of lab equipment and then channeled another of her powers to take over levitating the box to put it back where it belonged without damaging it.

"I am the Box Ghost! You shall not...!" Willow didn't even bother reacting as she cast the 'reverse ghost portal' spell that she and Giles had worked out with Jenny Calendar's help. It was basically a human-cast version of the same spell the Grim Reaper had tried to use on Willow the night she'd gotten her powers, except that it automatically drew in the nearest ghost and/or demon and threw them back into the Ghost Zone. Thankfully, so long as she was human at the time, it never affected her.

"Hey!" the Box Ghost screamed as he was sucked into the small portal at his feet. "Beeewwaaaarrrrre—*!"

"How many times does that make this week?" Buffy asked as she continued to walk along beside her friend.

"I lost count after the first day," Willow shrugged.

_Skulker_

Willow screamed in outrage as the half cybernetic ghost stole her new PDA and put it on it's arm. What made it worse was the upgrade it got from it. The worst of all though was that it had her entire syllabus for her school paper that she had to write up this weekend, on the Purple-backed White Ape Gorilla.

"Give that back!" Willow Wisp screamed at the blue-flame-haired exo-skeleton ghost hunter.

"Hah hah!" Skulker screamed triumphantly. "With this, hunting prey like you will be easy! Now come, ghost-girl, your scalp will make an excellent trophy on my..." He was suddenly interrupted by the beeping sounds of a cavalry charge. Willow blushed as everyone heard her ring-tone reminder. "Go to zoo to observe the grooming habits of the Purple-backed White Ape Gorilla?"

To everyone's shock and amazement, the rockets on the back of Skulker's suit suddenly came to life and he blasted off, presumably to the local zoo, and showed no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

"Huh," Xander clicked his tongue in cheek, arms crossed. "Well at least he's punctual."

Willow and Buffy both gave him a dirty look, but Willow's dissolved into tears at the loss of her PDA. Until Xander reminded her that she still had a spare at home.

_Lunch Lady_

"Hello dear, what can I get for you today?" the green-skinned, old lady in a bright pink outfit asked in a gentle and caring tone.

"Today's special please!" Xander grinned expectantly.

"Anything but pork please, I am Jewish after all," Willow replied.

"Uh, just a salad please..." Buffy started to say.

The nice gentle lady suddenly grew twice as large, her eyes turned red and warts and bulging muscular veins covered her face and arms as the trays of meat around her began to float. "WHAT WAS THAT?" an angry roar echoed out from the normally demure Lunch Lady.

"Eep!" Buffy squeaked and cowered for a moment before quickly correcting herself, "A, uh, a chicken and beef salad on the side and a steak for the main course?"

"Oh," the Lunch Lady was suddenly back to being quiet and demure. "Will that be all dear?"

"No thank you," Buffy quietly accepted her tray and followed her friends.

"Tell me again how you managed to convince this one to not go on a rampage?" Buffy whispered to her fellow superhero friend.

"Hello, this is High School," Willow pointed out, "Plus, she has experience and after Xander kind of got the other one fired for nearly killing us with rat poison, I figured that so long as nobody tries to get rid of the all-meat menu, it's a win-win situation."

"Best Apocalypse I ever averted!" Xander spoke around mouthfuls of the meat casserole he was devouring.

_Ember_

"SAY MY NAME!" the pale-skined blue-haired rocker screamed out to the crowd of Sunnydale High Students.

"Shouldn't we be stopping her or something?" Buffy asked as she struggled with the giant mind-controlling tentacle demon thingie nobody could remember the name of.

Willow flew overhead, blasting the creature's spawn off of other students, including Xander and her 'boyfriend' Oz. She also went intangible, avoiding the thrown weapons the still-mind-controlled students were tossing at her, before flying down and picking Buffy up just before she could get surrounded and mobbed.

"We've kind of got a bigger problem right now, don't you think?" the white-haired, blue-eyed ghost superheroine observed to her fellow superheroine. "Besides, they'd be under her thrall even if she were a perfectly ordinary teenage rock star, and I'd rather deal with the demonic mind controller first, get it out of the way, and _then_ deal with the ghostly mind controller. At least I already know how to handle her."

"But she's getting more powerful with every person we're freeing!" Buffy argued. "How are we going to beat her if she's unbeatable?"

"By shorting out her sound equipment and hacking the feed so that people start saying any name other than hers," Willow gleefully pointed out.

_Walker_

"That's against the rules!" the tall white ghost in a black stetson hat screamed at Willow Wisp.

"Says who?" Buffy Summers, the Vampire Slayer and interim Ghost Slayer, rebutted.

"Says me," the ghost, speaking like some kind of deranged Texas Ranger, pulled out a book and pointed at it self-righteously.

"And who are you?" the petite blond crossed her arms and looked up at him petulantly.

"I'm Walker, I'm..." he started to speak, but suddenly he was crushed by a flailing tentacle/head from the Hellmouth Demon.

"BUFFY! A little help here?" Willow Wisp screamed at her friend, firing green beams of energy at the demon, holding it back while Giles and Angel prepared a way of sealing off the Hellmouth for good. She hadn't even noticed the white ghost named Walker who'd been shouting at her about rules.

Buffy shrugged and put the event out of her mind, charging dead ahead. Still, she wondered when Xander would be done with the zombies in the basement, things were starting to get a bit hairy around here.

_Technus_

"I am the great and..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, move over already, I can't see the screen," Xander waved aside the second most annoying of Willow's enemies. What kept him from being the most annoying, other than the fact that the Box Ghost really was _that_ much more annoying, was that occasionally he became a genuine threat, especially if he ever got a hold of advanced technology.

Thankfully, this was Sunnydale, and so far the most advanced form of technology he'd found was a serial killer android and Willow's newest PDA, the latter of which had been firewalled and protected so heavily that this 'technology' ghost actually regarded it the same way vampires treated crosses and holy water.

"Couldn't you at least let me have a turn?" the high-pitched voice whined as he floated to the side.

"You finished upgrading the washing machine and the TV?" Xander asked in turn.

"Puh-lease, I did that ages ago!"

"Then I'll switch it to two player after this level and you can like possess it and we can beat the boss level together," the normal guy compromised.

"Hey, that's a good idea!" Technus agreed, not even considering terrorizing this normal person just because he could. Besides, he had this annoying habit of getting super powered items or abilities that only lasted as long as he needed them to, and then he was back to being the normal guy again.

_Buffy_

"Buffy, are you sure you're OK?" Willow asked as they patrolled the cemetery. "You've been kind of... well it seems like you're made at me for some reason."

"What? No, why would I be mad at you? For any reason? Even valid ones..." the Slayer protested, muttering the last bit as quietly as she could. After a moment to organize her thoughts, "I'm not... mad, at you Willow. I'm more mad about the Kendra situation... or Angel missing... or even the fact that every time we turn around these days there's a ghost or phantasm alongside the demons and vampires..."

"GOING GHOST!" Willow shouted, and in a flash of white light, rings of energy going up and down her body, the redhead wallflower turned into a white-haired superheroine flying through the air to blast away a number of green glowing animal mishmash creatures.

"... Like I was saying..." Buffy growled. She heaved out a sigh of frustration, which was then held when a big guy with a scar, a geek with meal worms all over him, a redhead with a lot of guns, and about half a dozen vampires, plus Spike and Drusilla, all chasing an injured and running Angel.

"Hello misplaced aggression," Buffy said with a happy smile, adjusting golden necklace with a green gem some dragon lady had dropped the other day. Buffy had claimed it as a spoil of Slaying and had enjoyed wearing it. She barely even noticed how it started glowing ghostly green around her neck as she approached the demons. Nor did she care to notice how the glow shifted to a blood red right as she fully embraced her calling and delving in the Slayer Spirit.

After that, she could hardly get anybody to fight her without trying to run away first, as rumors of the "Dragon Slayer" spread far and wide.

Kal-El of Konoha:

Naruto creates Superman Jutsu: Strength, Speed, Flight, Heat Vision and Super/Cold Breath

"Hey Ji-ji!" a 4-year-old Naruto Uzumaki called as his ANBU babysitter walked him into the Hokage's office. The boy had been living on his own for about a month now, having run away from the orphanage the moment he could run. Every time he ran away, ANBU found him in his parents' old apartment, asleep on the bed there. They returned him to the orphanage the next morning, but he kept running away, and kept going back to that apartment, so in the end the Hokage put the lease, fully paid until Naruto would become a genin, in Naruto's name and let the boy stay there, assigning D-Rank missions and the occasional ANBU rookie to watch over the rambunctious child.

"Lookie I found!" the blond haired blue eyed child literally bounced over to the Hokage's desk. No other child was allowed the free access to the Hokage and the Hokage's office as this child was. Sarutobi felt it was the least that he could do for his successor's only child. The boy needed family, and while the Council had prevented him from making it official, the Third would make sure that the innocent child, no matter how much he acted out, would have family in him and anyone else that he could get to see the truth of the young boy.

"Now, Naruto-chan, what have I told you about-oof!" the Third gasped as the boy landed like a canonball in his lap, "-about knocking before entering?"

"Sawry Ji-ji!" Naruto grinned toothily up at his grandfather in all but blood. "But lookie I found!"

Sarutobi sighed, struggling on in the battle to teach Naruto manners and how to speak properly. At least he wasn't spouting out his favorite word every few seconds. "Let's see _what_ _it is _that you _have found_," he spoke slowly, enunciating each syllable so Naruto would learn the proper words to speak when talking.

"Dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed as he handed the Third Hokage an old magazine.

No, Sarutobi corrected himself, it wasn't a magazine, it was a comic book. Rather beat up looking too. And a fairly familiar title to boot.

"Who is dat Ji-ji?" Naruto asked, pointing at the picture of the title character on the cover, who was holding the globe of the Daily Planet while flying over a busy street.

"I believe he is called _Superman_," the old ninja answered. "It's said he's faster than a speeding shuriken, more powerful than a Tailed Beast, able to leap mountains in a single bound, and fights for truth, justice and freedom for all. And unlike ninja, he does so out in the open for all to see his powers and know his name."

"Wow!" Naruto was riveted and for the first time since he was an infant, Sarutobi could hold the boy without him bouncing and struggling to get free.

"This is a comic book, Naruto, chron-uh, it tells the story of Superman's adventure during this day." Seeing the stars in Naruto's eyes, and enjoying being able to hold the small boy without having to fight him for the right to do so at the same time, he then offered, "Would you like me to read this to you Naruto?"

The boy nodded his head, but his eyes were solely on the pictures displayed before him. The Third Hokage opened the comic book up and began to read, pointing out which frame he was on so the innocent boy could keep up with him. After they were finished, Naruto calmly got down off his lap and then started talking excitedly about Superman and what all he could do and how awesome he was and how cool it would be to be able to do all that. The ANBU Inu came in and took the exhausted Naruto back to his apartment for a nap. He never stopped talking about Superman the whole way.

The next afternoon, Naruto showed up with two more comic books, just as beat up as the first. Thus began the afternoon ritual of Naruto and the Third Hokage reading Superman comics.

One Year Later...

Naruto sighed with boredom as he looked at the baby in the crib. It had taken quite a while to get him to quiet down, and now the Old Man was out of time. It was the third day in a row that this little... _baby_ had ruined their time reading Superman comics. If he wasn't the Hokage's grandson, Naruto might be angry at little Konohamaru. As it was, with that little tuft of brown hair on top of his head, all Naruto could think about was how Superman would react to a crying baby, or even to Konohamaru in particular. The five year old had a profound revelation at that moment, as he realized that Superman would do everything he could to make it so the baby didn't have to cry, even if it were a whole lot of trouble and it was the last thing he wanted to be doing, Superman thought of others first and himself last.

And what kind of person would Naruto be if he didn't do the same? Think of others first and himself last!

Naruto admired and wanted to be like Superman, and for a little while that was just because he wanted to be able to do what Superman could do. Fly, run fast, and was so strong he was invulnerable to all physical harm. But then this baby came along and ruined Naruto's day three days in a row and forced him to face just how selfish he was being. And who he was acting like.

Naruto didn't want to be a Lex Luthor, the kind of person that had everything imagineable and never satisfied with it, wanting only more and to make everybody else miserable, and to destroy Superman.

And so, at five years old, the son of the Fourth Hokage and the last survivor of the destroyed Uzugakure, in front of the grandson of the Third Hokage, Naruto Uzumaki made the decision that he wanted to be like Superman. He'd actually learned how to read from Superman comics for crying out loud! More than that, he wanted to be Superman for real, he wanted to be a hero, a real super hero. Not just one person that does one right thing at the right moment, but the kind of person that does the right thing all the time, again and again, no matter how hard it is or will become.

That was also the last day that Naruto came to the Hokage's office to read Superman comics. The following day, instead, marked the first that Naruto came to the office to help look after Konohamaru, and he started hanging around the park and visiting the orphanage to play with other children. None of the citizens much liked it, the 'demon brat' spending time close to their children, but the boy was practically a saint in day-glow orange. He stopped bullying, no matter how many times he got beat up himself, and he helped younger kids with anything and everything. And he did it without ever throwing a single punch.

Until one day...

"Naruto, how would you like to be a ninja?" the Third Hokage asked his favorite little friend, who was actually a better babysitter for his grandson than any of the genin taking the D-Rank mission.

Naruto scrunched up his little face and looked up at the Hokage, the latest Superman comic lay open in his lap, "Hey Ji-ji?" he asked for attention.

"Yes Naruto?" responded Sarutobi, having not expected this particular reaction to his news for the young, impressionable lad. Most boys his age would be jumping at the chance to become a ninja and join the Academy. Yet again, he mused, Naruto was just full of surprises.

"What does a ninja do, exactly?" Naruto asked the third most difficult question Sarutobi had ever faced, and the second most dreaded conversation he had ahead of him. The first of course being THE Talk!

And so Sarutobi did his best to answer the question. "Well Naruto, that is a troubling and... complicated answer. For most, a ninja is a warrior trained to use chakra and weapons and special tactics to complete missions for their village or whoever is paying for the mission in the first place. In Konoha, ninja are protectors and soldiers and healers and even heroes. Yes, heroes." He grinned at the sparkle that shone in Naruto's eyes at that word. "Ninja carry on the Will of Fire and protect that which is most precious to them, and to everyone in Konoha. We also, as ninja of a Hidden Village, answer to a Lord. In Konoha's case, the Fire Lord. In addition to serving the Fire Lord, we also take missions and serve ordinary citizens."

"So... people pay for ninja to protect them and stuff?" the boy asked in such a way that Sarutobi briefly felt a wave of guilt at his profession.

"Well... yes. Although Konoha ninja treat lives as far more valuable than money or a successful mission," he defended Konoha's honor as a ninja village.

Naruto frowned. "Ji-ji... I'm not sure I want to be a ninja."

Sarutobi was stunned. You could knock him over with a leaf. It took him some time to recover from this disturbing news.

"What..." his voice was gravely with emotion, afraid of the answer even as he asked the question, "...what _do_ you want to be Naruto?"

Naruto grinned up at the old man and answered him with all the seriousness of a five and a half year old, "I want to be Superman."

A Few Years Later

It had taken all of fifteen minutes for the Hokage to be convinced that Naruto truly did know that Superman was fictional, he was not real, and normal people could not do what he could. It took him two days, however, to comprehend what Naruto truly meant by his statement and what it could mean for his plans for the young jinchuriki. As in plans that a parent or grandparent make for their child or grandchild, making arrangments so they can grow up to be successful, good and decent people. It took another three weeks before Sarutobi could talk Naruto into being a ninja, but a very special kind of ninja.

Originally, Sarutobi had expected and half hoped that Naruto would declare he definitely wanted to be a ninja and he wanted to be the strongest of them all, Hokage. That, he at least had experience with and knew exactly how to handle. A boy that wanted to be Superman however, that was something else entirely.

In the end, he talked Naruto into attending the Ninja Academy, and promised to help Naruto in whatever way he could to attaining his dream. He started by sitting Naruto down and drawing up an outline of goals for Naruto to accomplish. Really, all they were was a list of Superman's virtues and abilities. From there, things rapidly grew and evolved in ways that neither the Third Hokage nor Naruto's father the Fourth Hokage could have predicted for their heir.

Naruto changed his day-glow orange for an ever shifting mix of reds and blues and yellows. He swore from that moment on to always tell the truth, and he did. Anytime he did not want to tell the truth, instead he said nothing at all. He also faded into the background and continued helping people. He could also talk anyone into helping him out with anything, and more than one ANBU got written up over Naruto's little "heroic missions". Thus they were also rotated out to active duty and far more active duty ninja were summoned to be ANBU at a far more regular pace than what had started to become the standard. And the biggest change of all was that any time the Hokage had to leave the village, for any reason from a meeting with the Fire Lord to a diplomatic meeting with foreign shinobi, Naruto was with him.

When the issue with the Hyuuga Clan and the Kumo Ambassador came up, Naruto was told to wait outside with the young girl that had been almost-kidnapped. He took one look at her, told her to stand up and follow him. Meekly, she obeyed and watched as he busted down the door the private meeting was being held behind. The Hyuuga guards tried to stop them, but Naruto held his ground and actually glared them back. He walked up to the Hyuuga Elders, Hinata right on his tail, and told them straight up they all looked like women and should cut their hair. Only cute girls were supposed to have long hair after all.

He then asked the Hokage what was going on and why a pretty girl like Hinata was waiting alone in a dark hallway after being almost-kidnapped. The Hokage told him that Kumo, a foreign country that Konoha had a peace treaty with, had sent an Ambassador who was the one that had tried to kidnap Hinata, but Hinata's father Hiashi had killed him to get her back. And now Kumo was demanding the killer of their ambassador be sent to them for trial. Or execution rather.

Naruto then turned and asked Hiashi why he killed the man.

The Head of the Hyuuga scoffed and made to ignore the child, but looks from the Hokage and even his daughter forced him to reconsider. His answer was that he had been frightened and had lost control of himself, striking to kill rather than disable, which he admitted after the fact he should have done. Naruto then called him a liar. Before Hiashi could say anything else, he told the man and everyone in the room that he hadn't been frightened, he'd been angry. Naruto knew what fear and anger looked like in adults, and Hiashi wasn't afraid when he talked about it. He was angry.

The morning after that, Sarutobi visited the new Kumo Ambassador with Naruto at his side. Before anything could be said, Naruto asked whether he was happy or sad that the other ambassador had died so he could be ambassador now. Thinking he was talking to the Hokage's son or grandson, he answered that he was sad, and wanted justice for the other ambassador's murder. Naruto then asked him why the other ambassador had died, and the answer given was that it was obvious the Hyuuga had overreacted, but the consequences could not be ignored. So then Naruto asked a question that stumped both men. What were the consequences for an angry man protecting his oldest daughter from another angry man?

An hour later, the Kumo Ambassador was sending for further instructions, because no matter what way you turned it, Kumo came out the bad guy and would be publicly embarrassed by anything but a silent resolution, and demanding the immediate death of a father protecting his daughter was leaving a bad taste in his mouth. It also set a very bad precedent for Kumo to work by. Before the end of the day, he had his reply (hawk courier) and stated that at the time of the kidnapping, the Kumo Ambassador was not acting in the interests of Kumo, and thus was not at that time an Ambassador. They also began the extradition process to have Hiashi stand trial for the death of the man from Kumo. It was the largest scandal of the time and very public. Hiashi was, eventually, acquitted. His twin brother Hizashi was never required to take his place or die for him.

The time after that was when the Hokage took Naruto with him to the Chuunin Exams in Ame. Where he met Hanzo the Salamander. And was shown, by both the Hokage and Hanzo-sama, how to mold elemental chakra. Naruto's element was wind and it was mere minutes after he learned how to mould elemental chakra that he was gathering all the wind around him and trying to fly. That he actually managed to lift himself up a few centimeters only served to further impress the two older ninja.

When Hanzo heard Naruto's goal to become Superman, at first he laughed, and said something that it would be more along the lines of Superninja. Then Naruto calmly corrected the old warrior and he was more impressed than ever. He then made a decision. He could either give him a useless technique scroll that had only a single fire technique on it, or he could allow him to sign his summoning scroll. Then the brat told him that the last thing he ever wanted to be was Lex Luthor. Hanzo tossed him the technique scroll and gave him one last bit of advice before turning and never looking back. The advice simply was that any ninja can use any technique, it's just easier for ninja of one element to use jutsu of the same element, but it was also possible for a ninja to learn one single technique of an opposing element to the same level as jutsu of his own element. The technique was a Katon fire jutsu that used the eyes instead of the mouth.

Hanzo spent the rest of the Chuunin Exams dodging an exuberant Naruto wanting to hug him at every turn.

The most recent vacation for Naruto and the Hokage, however, was when they went to a hotspring gambling town and Naruto was introduced to his godfather and godmother together. Jiraiya, they met at the hotsprings, and Tsunade, they met at the casino. Both of them came home with Sarutobi and Naruto by the end of the vacation.

While at home in Konoha, Naruto worked himself tirelessly. He still got eight hours of sleep a night, but only after a grueling day of training and chores and schooling. In the mornings, Naruto raced all over town and 'helped' people. Some of them never knew he was there, they didn't even know anything had been done at all in the first place. Others were initially distrustful, but eventually warmed up and welcomed the help. A great deal many more took it for granted and treated him like a little errand boy and kept him jumping through hoops constantly. That he succeeded day after day and did it all with a smile did little to change such attitudes, but to everyone else, namely the ninja of the village, it was awe inspiring.

At school, Naruto studied and was attentive in class. He got a lot of questions wrong, and he was often clumsy and a klutz and dubbed the class clown by the majority of students and teachers alike. He merely smiled and went on like nothing was wrong, never bothering to try and correct their assumptions. After all, if Superman could handle such ridicule as Clark Kent, it was the least Naruto could do as himself.

In his free time, however, Naruto trained. When Jiriaya and Tsunade returned to Konoha, he trained like never before. When he was invited to the Hyuuga to train alongside Hinata, Hanabi, and Neji, he almost wished he knew what real free time was like.

ShaXan Omake:

"Shaman Training"

"Spirit Form! Unity!" Xander shouted and then was suddenly kicking vampire and demon ass alongside the Buffybot.

'Ugh, I hate that thing,' Buffy's spirit communicated to him. 'Think you could swing a wide punch and knock it's stupid head off?'

Xander flipped up over a demon biker that had been trying to run him down, dragging the yellow and red fanged thing from its ride and breaking its neck before landing solidly on his feet. He then immediately ducked down and swung several fast and wide punches and a couple of powerful kicks to defeat his next few opponents.

'Buff, you mind concentrating a little here? This Unity only works best when the both of us are concentrating on it, and right now I'm the only one doing the concentrating here!' he 'said' back.

'Puh-leez!' she scoffed, 'These guys are pushovers. I could beat them in my sleep..

Xander was then punched and nearly knocked unconscious by the biker's leader.

'XANDER!' Buffy screamed. She then took over, as Xander was rather insensate at the moment. After the big bad demon was so much paste on the ground, she relieved control and Xander shook his head, wobbling a bit on his feet. Thankfully the Slayer Healing aspect quickly corrected any lingering pains he had.

"Note to self, and Buffy, work on Spirit Unity," he mumbled to himself and seeing that all the other demon bikers were fleeing at the sight of their boss being taken out, he allowed himself to relax a bit and started making his way back to the others.

"Bonus Spirits"

Xander was working two jobs now. Construction Foreman, and full time Demon Killing Shaman. One of them, he could handle in his sleep. The other was giving him greater difficulty than he thought he might have going in. Since one of those jobs he'd been doing since High School, minus recent benefits, guess which one was giving him more trouble.

Obviously the one he'd been doing since High School!

Especially when it was him against a demon strong enough to beat a Slayer!

'What do I do? What do I do? What do I do?' Xander was screaming at Buffy while using all her available power to keep dodging.

'I don't know! I don't know! I don't know!' she screamed back. 'I'm giving you all I've got! I don't know what else to do!'

"BUFFY! XANDER!" Willow came screaming around the corner.

"A bit busy here, Wills!" Xander/Buffy said together, their voices overlapping as they were Spirit United at the moment.

"Oh, right, uh, best do this now then," Willow hurriedly pulled out a small bag and handed some things to Tara and Anya who had run up beside her. "Anya, you're water, Baby, you're earth, I'll be fire."

"Are you sure about this?" Anya protested while still accepting the totem from the witch.

"Buffy and Xander alone can't beat that thing, so," Willow and Tara channeled their magic and all three totems activated, "we're getting them some help. The Slayer kind."

To Xander and Buffy's eyes, the three totems lit up with spirit flames and then three spirit orbs, one colored red, another colored blue and the last colored brown flew up and them slammed into Xander's chest before they knew what had happened.

"SLAYER UNITY!" Xander's mouth suddenly screamed as his eyes flashed white and he was moving faster than the demon could keep up with. His next punch fractured the creature's bones and after whaling on it for about half a minute, the Slayer-infused Shaman ripped the thing apart with his bare hands. Only after none of it got back up did he relax and four spirit orbs were ejected from his body and coalesced into four separate ghosts.

"Lucy!" Buffy exclaimed, surprised at seeing the Civil War era Slayer.

"Buffy? What... what happened? Where...? Oh," Lucy Hanover paused and took a long look around their location. "This... was not expected."

"How would you know?" Buffy argued back, "They don't exactly tell you a lot in briefings."

All of the spirits had to agree to that.

"Buffy?" a brown skinned girl with dreadlocks held back in a ponytail prompted.

"Oh my god! Kendra! Wow, it's like a Slayer convention or something!" the blond Slayer Spirit grinned. Then she looked at the final spirit and was a bit confused. "Uh, sorry, but I never really read much of the Watcher's Diaries. You are...?"

She was a tall, African-American woman, full head of curly black hair and was wearing a strangely familiar black leather duster. "My name is Nikki Wood. Last thing I remember was fighting this vampire in Central Park. Watcher said he was called William the Bloody. Then... Oh. So, I died?"

"Uhm, yeah, a while ago, sorry," Buffy winced and shrugged as she apologized.

"Hi, maybe we should let Lucy do the explanations this time, Buff?" Xander interrupted. "Kendra, great seeing you, Lucy, a pleasure as always. Miss Wood, welcome to the team. Now that we're all introduced... somebody care to explain _them_?" He was pointing over his shoulder and all four Slayer Spirits were surprised to see a really, really big hyena floating there, along with a slightly transparent military battle fatigues wearing version of Xander right beside it.

"Oh, uh, uh-oh," Buffy remarked with a slight gulp. "Looks like you've got yourself some bonus Guardian Spirits, Xan."

"Furiyoku"

The Star of Destiny had come to pass.

The Shaman King Tournament was starting.

And it was happening right next door to Sunnydale. Literally, Dobe Village, the site of where the final rounds of the Shaman King Tournament was to be held was less than a hundred miles from where Xander and Anya, and all his Guardian Spirits lived. Out in the desert, but it wouldn't exactly be a long commute.

The catch, in order for Xander to "help" the future Shaman King win his title, the newly minted shaman had to _enter_ the Shaman King Tournament himself. Which meant passing the preliminary round and earning a oracle bell. IE, the Official Tournament Beeper.

"What kind of rules give you only ten minutes to discover some super secret shaman technique?" Xander exclaimed, having already united with ALL of his spirits, giving him the training of the perfect soldier, the senses and abilities of a hyena, and the raw power of a Slayer Unity. And _STILL_ he couldn't land a solid hit on this guy. He wasn't talking much either, other than to explain the rules and the word 'Begin!' right before he did this glowy trick and turned his headband into some kind of Batman Cloak.

… Wait a minute, it couldn't be that simple, could it?

Xander released all of his spirits at once.

"Xander! What are you doing?" Buffy screamed at him once she'd reformed into her spirit form.

"Trying something a bit different here, Buff. Bear with me," Xander took out his pocket knife and a crossbow he kept on hand for emergencies. "Soldier! ATTEN-HUT! Into the crossbow! Alpha, into the knife!"

The two minor spirits, a camouflage green and a spotted golden amber spirit balls shot into each of the tools and they suddenly transformed. In his right hand, he held a machete with a razor's edge, glowing the same color as the golden amber spirit ball. In his left hand, he held a familiar rifle, identical to the one he'd wielded on Halloween night when he'd originally dressed up as the Soldier in the first place.

Xander grinned and gave his opponent the evil eye. "That's kind of what I thought. Only got two hands though, so I don't think I'll be able to do that with everybody, but that's OK. I'm pretty sure Slayer-sized me can do a lot of damage with just these two. SLAYER UNITY! AIR! EARTH! FIRE! WATER!"

The Slayer Spirits once more coalesced inside him and it took only another thirty seconds for them to nail the Native American Shaman with the Hyena Machete, giving the quiet guy a new scar to go with all the rest. The gun pretty much blasted that bat cloak to shreds and all he had to do was land a hit the examiner before the ten minutes ran out.

"You have demonstrated your Furiyoku. Here is your Official Tournament Oracle Bell. It will tell you when your next match is." With that said, he turned and disappeared into the night.

They all watched him leave and then shrugged at each other before going home for the night.

END?

Gotta Catch'em All Omake:

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt," Buffy commanded.

The vampires were struck with hundreds of volts of electricity and then exploded into fiery ash as the raw electricity caught their flesh and clothes on fire.

"Pikachu, Thunderwave," Buffy commanded.

The demons were all paralyzed on the spot and remained so even as Buffy and her friends went through, staking the vampires, decapitating the demons, or sprinkling salt, or saying their name backwards, whatever it took to destroy them permanently.

"Pikachu," Buffy ordered her friend, her arms crossed as they both looked up at the giant snake the Mayor had become, "Thunder." There was a flash of blinding light as real lightning from the overhead storm first struck the yellow electric mouse pokemon, and then was rechanneled into it's true target, which was vaporized nearly instantaneously.

END?

Hanaukyo Maid BtVS:

Episode **I**: Corp of the Problem

Xander woke up at the crack of dawn, which kinda surprised him since he'd travel across several time zones, and he typically woke up at noon back in Sunnydale. The first thing he saw when he woke up though, was himself.

Blinking away sleep he tried to clear his head and properly identify what his senses were telling him. Finally he realized that he was looking at a mirror, which was suspended over his bed into the ceiling. Startled, he quickly sat up and looked around. Then he groaned to himself and fell back into the soft and slightly uncomfortable mattress.

"It wasn't a dream. Though I'm actually wishing to say aloud that I wish it /_had_/ been a nightmare!" he groused to himself. He finally just accepted it and moved on and got up.

He quickly found the pack of clothes that he'd brought with him during his cross-global trek and dressed, immensely grateful that it appeared, for once, that he was a couple steps ahead of his Maids. Stepping outside of his room, he still felt overwhelmed by just about everything. He felt more like he was in some expensive hotel or condo that he was visiting for some kind of vacation, instead of in his ancestral inherited home.

Having had a brief tour last night with Mirielle, whom he couldn't get over because her face and voice were identical to his friend Buffy's back in Sunnydale, he knew his way around enough not to get _/too/_ lost, but there was still plenty of this mansion of his that he had no clue about. So, he decided to head off and explore, hoping to find out a little bit more about this place, and what he was supposed to be doing here.

A part of him cautioned him to wait for Mirielle to show up, so she could at least explain what it was he was seeing and where he was at the time, but he was too restless, and still too overwhelmed to try and bother the Head Maid.

So he just started walking down the hall. He passed several of the places he was already familiar with from yesterday's tour, until he finally came to a door at the end of the hall that he'd noticed, but honestly had no clue what was behind it. Curious, he went to the door and opened it, then he stepped inside. The door slammed shut behind him.

Xander was confused. He was now standing at the top of a flight of stairs, a flight of stone steps, which were part of an ancient-looking stone passageway that looked straight from medieval times or some classic old Frankenstein horror movie. Complete with torches spaced evenly along the corridor to provide a flickering lighting.

Still curious, despite his previous experiences with strange things, he started down the stone stairs, his steps echoing in the dim corridor. About what he judged to be halfway to the end of the staircase, the lighting began to change, from the flickering flames of the torches on the walls to something that was more artificial, but still just as unsteady. Like a lightning strike.

Almost to the bottom, he was finally able to hear the sounds that accompanied the strange lighting. Machinery, what types he couldn't begin to tell, but also the sounds of a blow torch welding metal, and above all that a feminine voice laughing and talking to itself, though what was being said, Xander couldn't entirely understand.

Finally he came to the end of the winding staircase, though the sources of the flashes of light, sounds of electricity, and the woman speaking weren't there, he saw an open doorway at the end of a stone corridor, which seemed to lead to said source. Shrugging, Xander walked casually down the corridor to the open door, his curiosity getting the better of him for once. He blinked slowly and carefully at what he saw, not entirely sure he could believe his eyes.

Although given that he'd been raised on the Hellmouth and had spent the past three to four years fighting the creatures, demons and vampires that inhabited Sunnydale, he was also pretty practical and thus was able to move past his disbelief rather quickly.

Straight from a scene outta Frankenstein and other horror-science-fiction movies, was a laboratory, giant machines, huge sparking dynamos, and other stuff he couldn't begin to identify took up the entire room, leaving few and limited open walking spaces. At a glowing computer screen on the other side of the room, Xander found the woman, who seemed to be talking to herself like some kind of mad scientist would. From the back, he could see she was one of . . . grumble . . . /_his_/ maids, wearing a green colored uniform. It took him a moment, but he recalled that green meant the Technical Department. Not that that helped him any, but at least he knew which department she worked in.

Thinking he would just leave her to her work, he finally caught what she was saying, able to understand it now that the echoes weren't so bad. And honestly, he preferred it when he /_didn't_/ understand.

TBC?


	53. X Nin: Naruto conti

_The Next Day:_

Naruto Uzumaki only ever had one recurring nightmare. He was falling through the air, a man was holding him, his features shadowed and unidentifiable, and there was this red light that filled the air with hate and anger. And then the light went away and the man was gone. He could still see him, was still held in his arms, but he was gone. That was the only nightmare Naruto ever had until the night he became a ninja. Well, a ninja, and perhaps something more.

The day after, he was too excited to sleep, and then there was the debriefing and everything going on, not to mention the fact that he could hear everyone's thoughts without even looking at them. In fact, there were some cases where he actually had to work to _not_ hear them.

That night though, after an exhausting day, he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. And then five minutes later, he woke up screaming as he lived through the nightmares of half the children in Konoha. Only half, because the other half were still awake for one reason or another, and had not yet entered REM sleep. Shrugging it off, Naruto tried to go back to sleep, and the next time he managed to only just keep from screaming, but only because he'd tapped into everybody's dreams as well as their nightmares, so it was just overwhelming instead of terrifying. Needless to say, Naruto did not sleep well that first night after his powers awakened.

Upon waking, he just lay there in his bed, eyes closed, listening to the thoughts and emotions of the ninja village waking up and getting ready for the day. At first, when he kept trying to subconsciously focus in on each individual thought, it was overwhelming and he felt like it would drive him crazy in minutes. Then he just stopped, stopped trying to think, to control what he heard, and instead just let it roll over him, hearing and feeling everything at once, all the noise, memories being created, imaginings and daydreams flooding his consciousness, all the emotions of boredom, excitement, anger, fear, sadness, relief, love, pain, all of it all at the same moment in a moment that was not ending.

He took a breath.

It all fell away. It was still there, it was just as omnipresent and ever-shifting as it had been, but instead of covering him, it merely surrounded him. It was outside of himself, outside of his mind, and he could recognize that now. It helped keep him centered and now he could see what was 'other' thoughts and which were his own.

He took another breath, and kept breathing.

He felt them. They were no longer a faceless overwhelming sensation of noise, emotion and thought. There were individual minds, individual people, all of them all around him, each a bright shining source of noise, emotion, and thought, which contributed, but was not connected to the whole rest of the world. In fact... he could see—no, sense, yes sense it. There was... separation, something that was nothing that separated the minds all around him. He could hear and sense them, but they could not sense each other, nor him.

He gasped.

Naruto, on a pure whim, had reached out with his mind and 'touched' one of the minds around him. The mind did not react, it—he, most likely had not sensed anything amiss. Of course Naruto had let go the moment he'd felt the connection, but the lack of reaction had him curious.

Slowly, carefully, Naruto reached out once more and touched the mind once more. A moment later, he felt so many new and different things that it took him a while to even begin to understand it. He went deeper into the mind and soon he was seeing through this person's eyes, hearing through his ears, and so on and so forth. It was Sasuke!

Moving, metaphorically speaking, deeper still, Naruto found the mind separated into different... he didn't have a word for it. Areas didn't work, because it was all in one 'area'; the mind. Systems perhaps? Well, he could come up with names for it later, but he instinctively knew what each of them was for and could do. One went to memory, another to dark emotions, another to happy and 'light' emotions, one to motor controls, one to instinct, and dozens if not hundreds more, each all vital to the stability of the mind, working in constant symmetry.

Except...

Except that Naruto could tell, just by 'looking' that Sasuke's mind was _not_ very stable. There was too much 'dark' and not enough 'light'. It made everything very... gloomy. So Naruto reached out and flipped the light switch on.

That's what it felt like to Naruto anyway. And about as complicated too. In all honesty, he wasn't the least bit sure of what it was he'd done to his rival, but the change was immediate and obvious as all of the thoughts and emotions that had been circling around and around in a loop in the Uchiha's mind came to a brief halt before moving onto more satisfying pursuits. Such as curiosity and a bit of hope about who his future teammates and Jounin Sensei were going to be.

Surprised at the change, Naruto scrambled to remove himself from Sasuke's mind, and just like that found himself back in his own body staring up at his ceiling. He rolled over to glance at his clock and was surprised that it was still early. It felt like he'd been trying out his powers for most of the day already, but it wasn't even five minutes past the time when he usually got up anyway.

A few more experiments, though he never thought of it in those terms, found that Naruto's perception of time was considerably altered when traversing other people's minds. Sometimes it varied, but not to a large degree. Judging from his clock and how much 'perceived time' he experienced, he would say that for every minute, a relative hour passed for his mind. And while he had no way to be sure of it, it could mean that for one minute of perceived 'mind time' was only one second of 'real time'. More than just that though, he found out exactly what he could do now with these new mind powers of his.

Aside from the obvious, which was pretty awesome all on its own, he found he could see through other people's senses, go through their memories like flipping through a picture book, control their bodies so they were either frozen stiff or running, jumping, and doing things that they might never do on their own. He also, in a small experiment with the two old fogy advisers that were always hanging around the Hokage, and glaring at Naruto, found out he could implant suggestions that they would later act on. When he checked in with Sasuke a bit later, he also figured out how to erase memories, seeing as the poor Uchiha had walked in on Homura and Koharu enacting Naruto's suggestion to them.

By lunchtime, Naruto had pretty thoroughly explored what these new abilities of his could do, but he was also discovering more and more with each passing moment. If he spread out his awareness, he discovered while walking towards his favorite restaurant, he could actually get a perfectly clear picture of the surrounding area by seeing through the eyes of everyone around him, coupled with his own eyes. It wasn't even disorienting or anything, it just made everything make more sense. What was even cooler was how he could link this new sensory information to his reactions and spacial awareness. He could dodge and move better than he ever had before. He couldn't wait to try out his taijutsu with this power!

He arrived at Ichiraku Ramen stand and immediately took his usual spot and made his usual order. He'd also found that while he could hear whispers all around him all the time, he actually had to concentrate to read someone's mind much like you would have to intentionally listen to a distant conversation going on in a noisy room, so he didn't have to worry too much about violating his friends privacy. In fact, he left his powers in 'idle' the whole time while he ate his ramen.

After he was done eating, he remembered that he had to go get his picture taken for his Ninja ID, and so made his way to the Hokage Tower to arrange it.

A day later...

"KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!" A few dozen explosions of white smoke. A moment later, "OIROKE NO JUTSU: HAREM NO HENTAI!" All of the clones suddenly turned into ultra-hot blonds, brunettes, redheads, bluenettes, pinkettes, and he even threw in a couple green-haired and purple-haired hotties for good measure. It hadn't been to hard to read Ebisu's mind to find out exactly what it was he 'liked' like that and simplicity itself to modify his jutsu to match. The fountain of blood coming from his nose rivaled that of the Hokage in the end.

"Hah! Knew he was a pervert. A closet pervert, but a pervert nevertheless," Naruto said confidently as he ended the technique.

Konohamaru, who'd been the entire source of the argument between him and Ebisu, looked up at his new 'boss' a bit funny for a moment. Suddenly, Naruto felt it as he made a decision and all of his emotions and outlook on life shifted appropriately.

"Today, from now on Naruto, you and I are rivals! I'm going to be Hokage! And I'm going to work hard at being the best ninja that I can be, so that way I'll be the absolute best Hokage ever! Believe it!"

Naruto smirked and faced down his new rival, "Heh, if that's the case, then you'd better believe it! I'm going to be Hokage, and you'll have to get through me to get there yourself. Dattebayo!"

A week after that...

Naruto frowned as he sat there in the classroom with his two new teammates, waiting on their Jounin Sensei. He'd at first been excited about being on a team with Sakura, but five minutes with her, and her Sasuke-centric thoughts, even when he'd tried to do the same thing he'd done with Sasuke a few days ago, of changing her thoughts to be more based on him, it only took a few seconds before she was back to thinking about Sasuke, twice as much. It was almost like she was making herself think about him and nothing but him.

While Naruto had discovered how to control and influence other people's minds, he had yet to figure out how to make any permanent changes. Even with Sasuke, him 'turning on the lights' as it were had lasted only a few hours before he was back to his broody, dark thoughts centered self. It was a point in futility, as far as Naruto could see, to try anything more there with his new powers. Like with Konohamaru, he couldn't just 'program' the kid to grow up and realize what was right in front of him and how he really needed to buckle down if he was going to be serious about being Hokage one day. No, he'd had to convince him first so he made the conscious decision to be better.

Apparently, whether consciously or not, Sasuke wanted to be miserable and brooding over things he had absolutely no control over, and Sakura wanted to be a Sasuke-obsessed fangirl and little else. Idly, Naruto wondered if he was as imbalanced as everyone else he knew, and at the same time he wondered if there was anything he and his new powers could do about it.

He could sense, just barely, the man that was assigned to be their Jounin Sensei, Kakashi Hatake. He was actually, at that moment, investigating the living conditions and homes of the three of them and was at Sasuke's at that precise moment. He was also fully aware of the time but from what he could sense about the man, his imbalances weren't so much a subconscious choice as an intentional conscious one, going back to the deaths of his teammates and his own Jounin Sensei. The man didn't like to think of them too much, despite brooding about their loss daily, so Naruto couldn't get the whole story from his memories quite yet, but at least he had a good reason for being late. Then Naruto 'heard' him coming up with a number of not good and in fact very lame reasons for being late. Again, this was a conscious, intentional choice on his part.

This, Naruto's prankster nature decided, deserved some retribution. Quickly, he searched through the man's mind to find what he most feared, and then moved on to what most disturbed him as he wasn't about to kill, or even make it _look_ like someone had killed every last person Kakashi Hatake cared about, no matter how short a list it was. Finally, he found three memories that stood out above all others; the first time he'd met a man named Gai Maito, the time he'd pissed off Anko (everybody knew who Anko was) enough that she burned his "precious" (it took Naruto a few moments to realize that meant his Icha Icha books), and finally the one and only time he'd ever had to perform a D-Rank mission of cleaning out sewage when he was a genin himself.

It was simplicity itself to make Sakura and Sasuke's minds "lose track of time", he just looped a couple of the "systems" he found in their minds into staring off into space while their thoughts didn't actually go anywhere, they just focused in on keeping all of their senses on _not_ detecting Naruto. The end result was that they froze like statues and stayed that way until Naruto broke the loop in their thoughts. By that time, he'd fully set up the prank for Kakashi-sensei to walk right into.

If the man still took them as his pupils after going through all of this, he _deserved_ their respect, Naruto thought.

Finally, Naruto sensed him coming into the building. It had been at least half an hour since he'd finished setting up his other pranks, so Naruto decided to add one more, this time without blanking Sakura and Sasuke.

"Naruto! What are you doing?" Sakura screeched the moment he got up. She got her answer rather quickly as he opened the door slightly and placed an eraser, filled with chalk dust, at the top and closed it so the door would hold it in place... until somebody opened the door. Naruto chuckled to himself on his way back to his seat.

"Naruto! Don't play pranks on our new sensei! Besides, he's an Elite Jounin, he won't fall for something silly like that! Now take it down before you get us into trouble!"

Naruto would have laughed and even tried to say something to mollify the girl, but instead his head tilted as he sensed something. Kakashi had been right outside the door when Sakura said that, and he clearly saw the eraser in the door frame. And then the man actually decided to 'give the poor kid a break' and actually walk right into the 'trap' set for him without even trying to dodge or escape it.

Naruto blinked in surprise. Then he dug a little deeper, even as Kakashi poked his head inside the classroom.

His reasoning for doing this were more than Naruto expected. First and foremost, he wanted Naruto to feel like he'd accomplished something, knowing what was to come the 'little guy' was going to need all the positive encouragement he could get, was the main reason for taking such an action. The other reasons centered around making all three of them underestimate him, making them think that if he couldn't dodge a simple, poorly done (Hey, it was a spur of the moment thing! Naruto wanted to shout at that thought) prank, then he couldn't be as 'elite' as they said and thus would cause the poor genin to believe they actually had a chance.

Naruto frowned, instead of laughing and decided to go ahead with the rest of his waiting traps. He pulled a ninja wire that he'd been holding in his hands for the past half hour. The window across from the door, where Kakashi stood opened up. The Jounin, about to say something after being chalk-bombed, didn't, and took a step towards the phenomenon, keeping his eyes on it just in case something else was cooked up. Thus he never saw the trip wire at his feet until it was too late.

A few gallons of foul smelling mop water dropped down and drenched Kakashi from head to toe. The mop water had been, prior to being strung up in the ceiling, used to clean the restrooms of the Academy. All of them. Kakashi was _really_ late.

Tapping into one of the more interesting 'systems' in Kakashi's head, Naruto found something that would help move the prank right along, taking the 'luck' factor out of it a bit. Tapping into that part of his mind and using it as part of his own mind in order to do what he wanted to with it, Naruto never noticed as his eyes flashed red briefly just before he flashed through half a dozen hand seals and then put his right foot in the pooling mop water.

Suddenly, Kakashi started flying towards the open window, with both feet on the floor, actually being propelled by the water under and around his feet. He triggered another trip line, this time with a whole bag full of purple dust dropping onto him before he suddenly was thrown out the window.

Fifteen minutes later, Kakashi was standing back in the classroom, in a clown costume, covered in mud and what could have been raw sewage, and had what looked to be a rash caused by itching powder and too much scratching. Kakashi had been _really_ late.

"I... hate... you... all...!" the bedraggled Jounin gasped, having just escaped a swarm of angry bees, a nest of angry squirrels, and a pack of hungry dogs that wanted the meat in the clown suit's pants. Was it mentioned that Kakashi was _really, really_ late?

"Well then, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said in a tone uncharacteristic of him, highly respectful, "Perhaps that will teach you to not be so late next time. After all, the later you are, the more time I have to... prepare."

Kakashi gulped and shivered at the look on his prospective student's face right then. He decided to be only a few minutes late from now on, rather than several hours. "Meet me on the roof in... forty-five minutes... or more. Give me a ten minute window." He then walked out, presumably to find a shower or some other place to clean up.

Naruto stood up, and whistled as he walked out, planning on getting a bite to eat at Ichiraku's before coming back for the meeting on the roof. Sasuke and Sakura gave each other disbelieving looks, and then just stared after their future teammate and Jounin Sensei.

Author's Note: Changed quite a few things around from the first draft. Also, watched the X-Men marathon this week on TV due to "X-Men Origins: First Class" coming out. Watched that a few times too. Naruto is still, "Professor X" and thanks to the aforementioned marathons and movie watching, I've expanded a bit on exactly what this will allow him to do. And yes, Naruto, when "tapping into it" can use the kekkai genkai of other people, because kekkai genkai are not mutant abilities, but cultivated natural talents involving the use of chakra and a few other things. So his "tapping into it" won't ever be as good as an original, experienced wielder of the same kekkai genkai, but it's impressive enough that he can use it I think.

Still haven't decided on if this is going to be a whole story, or just chapters in the Fantasies here. Anyway, the rest of the "Mutant Lineup" in Konoha now stands at; Naruto "Professor X", Haku "Iceman" (only his mutant power is that he can use every element of chakra and even turn himself into it, partially), Hinata "Marvel Girl/Cyclops" (bloodline remains the same, but her power is now officially, and not going to change any time soon, is telekinesis), Lee "Mystique" (blame "First Class" because now apparently Mystique was/is an X-Man, therefore her powers are up for grab, Lee is now a Kyubi-disfigured shapeshifter), Choji "Azazel/Nightcrawler" (No disfigurement or tail or anything, but he's a really fat kid that can teleport and manipulate the size and shape of his body, amazing enough as it is without adding the tail and skin color), and Gaara. Actually, it is fully my intention, if it ever goes that far, to turn every Jinchuriki, dead and alive, into a mutant. I'll leave Gaara's mutation to your imaginations for the next little while, but I will give you the hint that it has absolutely nothing to do with sand, magnetism, or anything at all from canon regarding Gaara. Good Luck! And Enjoy!


	54. Harry Potter and Fairy Tail

Harry Potter and Fairy Tail

_Prologue - A Dragon and a Baby_

Azulong was the Dragon of the East. Sometimes also referred to as the Storm Dragon. And he really hated it when the King called him Zoo-Zoo! Even if he was the King of All Dragons, there was very nearly war between them the last time Azulong had been at "Court", such as it was. Most of the time, Azulong spent his time wandering the Worlds.

He particularly enjoyed the New Worlds, created by humans that were connected to several "real worlds". Of course they were all real, but the _Digital Worlds_, as they were called, had slightly different origins than all the Earths roaming about Creation. At least there he didn't have to worry about the other dragons horning in on his business, or making fun of him for helping out human children. That was until the edict came down that everyone was to "adopt" a human child that is. The edict really made no sense, until Azulong discovered that the King had met with all those with Future Sight just before the edict came down.

Of course when it said everyone, it meant _Every One_!

And so Azulong was currently searching for an orphan to adopt. That he was currently searching in one of those Alternate Earths where dragons were myths and magic was in hiding...

Azulong paused and sniffed the skies as he continued over Europe. OK, he corrected himself, dragons were barbarian beasts contained by the Wizards of this world, but the vast majority of the world considered both dragons and magic to by pure fiction. Too bad there was no Digital World here...

And besides, the edict never said _where_ the orphan child had to come from, only that they were adopted and brought back to the Throne World, a world of near infinite magic, to be raised as a Dragon Slayer.

The large, snake-like blue and white dragon flew through the skies, high in the atmosphere, using his power of sight and some of his abilities that came with the title of Dragon of the East to search for destiny lines and see who might be compatible with him. After all, not just any wizard could be the Storm Dragon Slayer.

It wasn't until he reached the western-most edge of his domain, in England that he finally found a child that could potentially be the one. He was young, just over a year old. And yet his magic was strong. His destiny, however, was fractured. If Azulong left him, he would be drawn into a battle of good and evil that would threaten his very soul. If Azulong took him... he would be drawn back to this world and into the same battle of good and evil, but he would be stronger and better prepared to face the threat. Looking closer at the boy's potential and the lines of destiny, the massive fanged maw beneath his blue and yellow mask turned to a frown. His blue and white silvery scales sparked with raw energy until he looked more like his "Azulongmon" persona than a true dragon. He calmed himself when he saw that he was brewing a killer storm in his anger and that alone was enough to make his decision. That he was saving a child from a lifetime of abuse and neglect just cemented it.

He calmed the storm and made himself invisible to all human detection and flew down to the area known as Little Whinging, Surrey. He only had to loop the very small town once to find what he was looking for. A small street with identical houses up and down it. And the lights along the street going out one after the other. He moved so his head was directly over the street in question and breathed as quietly as a dragon is able to. He listened with interest as the wizard and witch, identifying each other as Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall, talked about current events. He had to move slightly out of the way when the flying motorcycle and giant identified as Hagrid arrived with the chosen one. Chosen by Azulong.

The Storm Dragon of the East suppressed his growling as much as possible as he listened further and then the three magic users left much the way they had arrived. Once he was sure they were gone, he punctured the wards already in place and erased them as though they had never been. He then, gently, picked up the sleeping babe and flew up into the air, heading East as fast as he could fly. He enshrouded young Harry James Potter in a protective orb of energy and dropped all methods of hiding once he reached China. It was not easy moving between worlds, and given he now had a passenger, he would need all the energy he could use to safely traverse back to the Throne World. Especially since all the dragons of the Court would be arriving there soon.

Idly, Azulong wondered if his friend Grandine had found herself a child yet. If she had, perhaps he could introduce young Harry and they could be friends. And he had no doubt that whenever Igneel, his best friend, got around to finding his child, they too would be friends.

Gathering up the required energy, Azulong picked up speed and once he was over Kyoto, Japan the portal opened up and he and the infant Harry Potter disappeared into the eye of a storm in a flash of light.

_Earthland_

_7 Years Later_

Harry James Potter laughed and giggled as he flew literal circles around his father. They were hunting for lunch, and Harry was taking the opportunity to practice his flying skills. He loved flying, always had, for a long as he could remember, and he suspected even longer.

Catching up with his father's head, he waved at the ancient dragon's left eye, before something caught his own eye and he swooped down to gobble up a small storm cloud, sucking up the lightning first before everything else followed in short order. Once finished, he let out a loud burp, and a bit of the cloud escaped his teeth. He giggled again and then roared out as he exploded with magical power. He grinned down at his talons and ran his tongue over the fangs in his mouth and reached up to feel the scales growing over his face. He was sparking all over now and his skin had taken a slightly blue tinge, but mixed with white so it made him look more silver like at a distance. He shot up through the air faster than ever and blazed back up beside his father, who hadn't stopped and was now several hundred miles away. Harry caught up to him in under a minute, and was soon flying ahead of him in short order.

"Harry," Azulong admonished with his echoing voice, "Dragon Force is not to be used so frivolously. Though it still amazes me that one as young has attained it at all."

Harry laughed and answered, "Not to worry, Father! I only call upon this state when I truly need it. Like outracing you!" He laughed again and flew ahead even faster.

"Hah!" Azulong roared in laughter, "As if, you little punk! You're a thousand years to young to beat me in a sky race!"

Later, once both father and son had landed on solid ground and were resting, the Storm Dragon of the East was giving Harry a few pointers on his magic.

"_Arashiryu no HOKO_!" Harry puffed up his chest, holding both hands in front of his mouth like he was about to blow into a pipe, and then the silver blue magic circle appeared in front of him and a silver gray twister with hundred mile an hour winds blasted straight out, highlighted with blue lightning. The giant rock he was aiming at stopped the blast for all of half a second before it exploded and everything else around it was eroded away by the wind until nothing but dust and sand remained.

"Good, good, good," Azulong praised him. "Perfect balance. Excellent spin in the vortex, and you've started adding lightning. Add in a bit of ice and it will be complete."

"I know," Harry grumbled, acknowledging his failings. "Most I can manage right now is a cold wind. I just need to head up North and taste some snow storms. Then I'm sure I'll get it mastered."

"You don't have to be perfect every time Harry," Azulong assured him. "I'll love you the same either way. And sometimes not being perfect shows you something that you might have missed and can help you in ways you'd least expect it. Now, show me your Talons and then I want you running, note I said running, not flying, all the way around that mountain over there. I'll be following along. When you get back here, without stopping once, we'll see about taking a trip up North."

"Yeehah!" Harry jumped up and cheered and then brought forth his magic circle and clenched his fist as he cried out, "_Arashiryu no Kagitsume_!"

After Harry took off running for the mountain, Azulong let out a long sigh and looked up at the sky, specifically at the constellation that was the same on every world with dragons on it, the constellation humans call Draco. He growled, but restrained himself. He had little time. The sun was rising, and it was only a few minutes until seven in the morning. He took to the sky and opened a series of portals through different worlds simultaneously, allowing him to spend the minimum amount of time on each to get what he needed. He was going to miss Harry's birthday. But he hoped to make up for that with some really great presents. A minute before seven, he returned to the hillside and deposited the presents as well as the scroll explaining things. And then he left.

An hour later, Harry crested the hill, panting and soaked with sweat. He wasn't too worried that he couldn't see his father, the Ancient Dragon often went invisible, mostly to keep from panicking the humans. When he saw the pile of presents, he cheered and you wouldn't have guessed that this 8 year old boy, almost 9, had just run over fifty miles in under two hours from the energy he displayed at the sight of those presents.

"Awesome! Thank you Azulong-otosan!" Harry screamed to the empty air as he tore open the first package.

He went through all of them in short order. It was all useful things, as dragons were not humans and didn't believe in useless junk or toys or anything for purely enjoyment sake. The first present had been a completely new outfit. Harry had stripped right there on the hillside and happily put on his new white pants, white tank top, blue turtleneck, and blue and silver jacket that was actually adult-sized, so fell to halfway down his shins when he had it on. The rest consisted of other useful items that either Harry or Azulong had found necessary at various times over the years, but didn't have on hand at those times.

Silver, steel-towed boots that were a size too big, but Harry was sure he would grow into. A pair of prescription goggles with high strength straps. A datapad with an EverLife battery contained in a titanium-steel alloy Kevlar coated scratch-resistant case with straps just as strong as his goggles. And the mother load, a brick of C-4 plastique with primer cord and blasting caps. There are very few situations in life that can't be handled with massive amounts of explosives.

After putting everything on and away in his backpack, Harry took to the air and started taking big sniffs. After all, not much could hide from a Dragon Slayer's nose, especially not a dragon. And they often played this game, where Azulong hid, sometimes a far way away, always invisible, and Harry had to find him using nothing but his senses.

Harry stopped mid-sniff and frowned. He fell back to the ground and actually put his nose right on the ground where he knew Azulong had sat and took another long sniff. He strained his ears and listened. He heard everything around him for miles. He heard the clouds overhead. He heard the Earth spinning through space beneath him. He heard the sun shining its heat down upon him in one constant, never ending explosion of energy, natural magic in and of itself. He heard humans and animals and plants and everything else in the world. He smelled it all too.

What he could not hear, or smell, or sense at all... were dragons. Anywhere. Nearby or far, there was not a sound or a scent or the feel of any dragon at all.

And that was impossible.

"A-Azulong-otosan?" Harry called out, tears forming in his eyes.

He heard something.

"IGNEEL? IGNEEL? Where are you? Where did you go? IGNEEL?"

"GRANDINE! GRANDINE! GRANDINE!

The sound of children crying out, lost in the world all of a sudden.

Harry transitioned into Dragon Force and wasn't even aware of the gathering storm clouds over a once peaceful valley.

The true power of the storm wasn't in the effect of its presence, but in that to create one, it tied together the four primary elements of nature and magic. Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire. The spin of the Earth was mimicked by the spin of the storm. Lightning was the purest form of fire found on the planet, moving living energy, all that fire was and all that it could be all at once. Wind and water were pretty self evident in a storm. So in order to be a Storm Dragon Slayer, one had to be tied, intimately, with the four elements as well as magic. The elements of nature and magic cried out in sympathy with the children of dragons as they mourned the passing of an age. And one such child cried louder than all the rest.

In the years to come, it would be known as the Week of Storms as there was no place on the entire planet that wasn't bombarded by storms of every kind. In the North, snow and ice storms froze everything. In the desert, sand and wind storms flew with no boundary. Around the oceans, hurricanes raged. In the South, thunderstorms boomed and tore open the skies. The swamps and wetlands flooded. The mountains were slick with mudslides for days on end. In the West, tornadoes and twisters destroyed the landscape. And then, in the East, there were gentle rain showers without end. And flying all over the planet, from coast to coast, from sea to sea, a boy flew through the air, crying out for his father.

_Fiore_

_Magnolia_

_Fairy Tail Guild_

_Three Years Later_

"Say that again!"

"What did you say!"

"Naked Teme!"

"Baka hothead!"

"WHY YOU!"

"Enough."

"Erza!" both boys suddenly shouted and were smiling and hugging each other.

The redhead who had spoken stared them down, her arms crossed over her armored breastplate. "That's better. Fairy Tail needs unity, and the two of you fight far too often."

"Erza! Fight me!" the pink-haired boy suddenly shouted, shoving the black-haired boy away.

A sudden wind flew through the guild hall as the doors slammed open. The whole place suddenly shouted out greetings and complaints in equal moderation, the complaints mostly from the female half of the room that had worn skirts that day. "HARRY!"

"Oi, Natsu-otouto!" the newcomer shouted out, the wind dying down as he entered. "Thought I told you, you don't get to fight Erza till you beat me, and you don't get to fight me until you beat Laxus!"

"Aw, but Harry-niisan!" Natsu whined.

A blue cat with a green scarf on his back jumped up on the table beside them and said, "Aye! But Laxus won't fight Natsu, because Laxus is hung up!"

"That's stuck up, Happy," Harry grinned and patted the talking cat's head with his free hand. He'd filled out quite a bit from three years ago, but he was still only 10 years old. Though his birthday was in just another month or so. His black hair was even more wind-swept and wild grown than ever, his emerald green eyes flashed beneath his ever-present goggles, and his blue-white-silver jacket fit him a bit better, but was still clearly too big for him. At the moment, he had a huge burlap sack over his right shoulder that was literally bulging at the seams. The lightning bolt scar on his forehead was on display as his wind-swept black hair was tossed back so it was uncovered at all times. If it wasn't for the sense of dark magic coming from it whenever Harry got really angry, people might have said he was trying to mimic Laxus, the Master's grandson. Harry just said, since he was at least ten years younger than Laxus and Laxus hadn't gotten his trademark scar until after Harry had already joined Fairy Tail, that Laxus was copying him.

"Harry, good to see you. Were you successful in your mission?" Erza asked, a slight blush in her face that nobody was going to comment on if they valued their lives.

"Of course!" Harry happily chirped, "Where do you think the giant bag of treasure on my back came from anyway?"

"Oh of course, of course," Erza's blush soon covered her whole face and she looked down and to the side. "Do-do you need any help with it?"

"Nah, it's a light load. Even Natsu-otouto could handle it," Harry shrugged, lifting up his goggles to wink at her. Nobody noticed the steam suddenly coming from her whole head.

"Ney, Harry-niisan?" Natsu pestered his fellow Dragon Slayer as the green-eyed boy unloaded his burden at the bar, where Lisanna was polishing all the glasses and mugs. "I got a job in another town coming up, can... can me and Happy... please?" he started begging when Harry started shaking his head before he'd even finished asking the question.

"Learn how to Gate on your own, Natsu," said Harry. "Or at least learn something beyond the basics." He was referring to Natsu's own Dragon Slayer magic; Fire Dragon Slayer magic.

"But it's hard!" he whined.

"Aye!" Happy chimed in.

"Yeah, it is actually," said Harry, "and I still learned it in a month, and had it mastered less than a year later."

"How come you wanted to learn so many different types of magic anyway?" Natsu asked.

Harry gave the other boy, who was his age though maybe a month or three older than himself, an incredulous look and replied, "I know exactly three different styles of magic Natsu-otouto! And I'm only any good at two of them, and the third is more out of necessity than anything else. Storm Dragon Slayer magic, Gate magic, and Archive magic. And I suck at Archive magic!"

"But Natsu and I only know one kind of magic each," Happy commented from the top of the bar.

"And so did I when I first got here," Harry pointed out. "The Master, Lisanna-chan and Mirajane really helped me out, and Erza and Gray too. Mystogan especially. Really nice guy. Oh, and you too Natsu-otouto."

"YOU'VE SEEN MYSTOGAN?" the whole place screamed at him.

Harry stuck his pinky in his ear and wiggled it a bit to get the ringing out of his ears. "My point is that they all showed me that I didn't know everything and that if I'm going to find Azulong and Igneel and all the others, then I'm going to need all the help I can get. And knowledge is power. Especially magical knowledge, which is why I'm still struggling with Archive."

"But Gate is a really useful magic!" Natsu argued.

"That I learned as a reward for an S Class job when helping Mystogan and Erza with it. From someone that was a very... talented teacher," explained Harry.

"Then teach me!" Natsu begged.

"I suck at teaching even worse than I suck at Archive," Harry shot him down instantly.

"Aye!" Happy helpfully agreed. Harry shot him a dirty look.

"You know, you could ask around here, see if anybody would be willing to share or help you learn a new style of magic. Something that may be useful in the future," Harry suggested.

"Macao is trying to show me how to use my flames better, but I don't understand him most of the time," Natsu whined.

Harry shrugged and accepted a drink, of milk, from the lady behind the bar. "Well, Macao is a much better teacher than I am, not that that's saying much..."

"Hey!"

"...So if you can't learn anything from him, or even Lisanna here, I certainly can't teach you Gate," said Harry.

"Hm..." Natsu put his thinking face on and then suddenly brightened as a light bulb went off over his head.

"Oh, Natsu, your ears are smoking!" Happy happily commented as his friend and partner suddenly ran up to the bar.

"Lisanna! Lisanna! Can you teach me?"

"Hm?" the white-haired shapeshifter asked with a curious smile.

"I want to learn new magic, like Harry! Can you teach me something? Please?" the pink-haired boy actually dropped to the floor and bowed his head till it touched the ground.

"You want to learn Transformation magic?" Lisanna asked, sounding pleasantly surprised. Half the guild, IE everyone that heard this exchange struggled to contain their snickering and soft laughter. Everybody knew what was going on between the two of them, but no one was going to say a thing until either one said something first.

"Aye!" Natsu happily confirmed that he wanted to learn her magic.

"Why?" Lisanna's voice had gone suspicious all of a sudden..

Natsu rolled his eyes up and thought about it, and then grinned and replied, "Because it would help out in playing pranks on Gray and help me get away from Erza. And..." Natsu's expression changed for a second, but only for a second before he continued with a bright smile, "And it would be fun to learn!"

Lisanna blinked. And then she smiled brightly and happily said to him, "I'll be happy to help you out Natsu. I'll meet you at your place after my next job."

"All right!" Natsu leaped into the air and high-fived with a winged Happy.

"Can I learn too, Lisanna?" Happy asked with a hopeful tone.

"Of course," she smiled wistfully.

Harry smirked at the white-haired girl as she stepped up to the bar to get her own glass of milk. "Don't say one word, OK?" she said to him while keeping her bright and happy smile on her face. Harry just took a sip from his glass and kept smirking at her. Only after she was turned, did he whisper, "Better you than me."

"Oh, Harry? I think I may need some help later this afternoon. Would you mind helping me out?" Lisanna's voice called sweetly across the bar.

"Get Elfman, I'm busy," he replied with a dower tone.

"Harry, you should help your comrades," said Erza.

"Um, why are you picking on me in the first place?" aforementioned Elfman whimpered at the mention of his name. His schoolboy outfit, complete with coat and tie and neatly trimmed haircut completed the image.

"Yeah, you just don't want to get wrapped into your sister's hands on lessons!" Harry called back at him. Looking back to Lisanna, he said to her, "I was not kidding when I told Natsu I suck at teaching. Also, keep in mind he'd be challenging me to fight like two seconds into the first lesson. And more importantly," Harry jumped down and left behind a heavy tip on the bar for his drinks, "I've got a job with my name on it waiting for me. Literally." He walked over to the stairs leading up to the second floor. Where the S-Class board was posted.

"Oh, well then, good luck!" Lisanna called with a bright smile and a wave. Harry smiled back, and sighed with relief and kept on climbing the stairs. It wasn't until he was in front of the board that he noticed Erza had been behind him the whole way.

"That wasn't very nice," she stated, staring at the board as if she were looking for a job.

"I'm serious, I can't teach a dog to fetch, let alone teach Natsu-otouto magic," he said back, pulling the job that really did have his name on it off the board. It was a Rescue and Retrieval job. A village in the East was being held captive by a Dark Guild and forced into slave labor, among other despicable things. Harry idly wondered how the job even showed up on Fairy Tail's board and wasn't already taken care of by the Magic Council and the Government, until he noticed the name of the Dark Guild; _Oruborus Hydra_. The problem was, they weren't officially a Dark Guild yet. Rumor had it, they were very on time with their bribes. "I would just get in her way. And furthermore, it's really cute when those two hang out together like that. I don't want to get in the way of that."

She scoffed and crossed her arms, then decided to change the subject, "How is it that I'm still the youngest mage to attain S-Class?" Erza asked, "And that the master has granted you permission to take S-Rank jobs?"

Harry grinned at the older girl's, very nearly a woman, straight-forward nature.

"Because I skipped out on taking the exam," he told her.

"Why?"

"Didn't feel like it," he shrugged. "As for why the master is letting me take S-Rank jobs... well, in order for me to take any of those... _D-_rank jobs that he keeps advertising out to everybody, he had to compromise to let me take one S-Rank job per month. Just so long as it wasn't a year-long one or more."

"Oh!" she pounded one fist into her hand as she realized what he meant, "Where you eat dangerous storms or start small rain showers and things like that!"

"Exactly," Harry nodded. "I'm a Storm Dragon Slayer for bloody sake, not a weather man! Catch is, unfortunately, I have to reserve the job at least a week before I can take it..." he then let out a heavy sigh, "... and I have to take an S-Classed Wizard with me."

"So," Erza blushed very slightly and looked away, "why haven't you asked me before?"

"Because you're always busy on your own jobs," he shrugged. "Anyway, Mirajane offered to go with me, so long as she got half of the reward. I told her she could have all of it except for the magical item, provided she actually did any of the work."

"Mirajane?" she exclaimed.

"Yeah, it was either her or..." Harry frowned and stopped talking.

"You and Laxus are still fighting?"

"It's the bastard's own fault! His attitude is..." Harry fumed for a minute and held his tongue.

"What if I joined you for this mission?" Erza asked out of the blue.

Harry turned to regard her, and then answered, "Ask the Master. My distance is going to be cut by half with two extra people, but I can manage. We'll have to walk the rest of the way to the village, and I'm going to need to eat along the way, otherwise I'll be completely useless."

Erza snatched the request from his hand, looked it over, and said,"I know where you can get exactly that."

Harry was intrigued.

_Eastern Fiore_

_One Day Later_

"Huh, a hurricane?" Harry observed, the two teenage S-Class Witches behind him on either side.

"It was being said that a number of Weather Mages had predicted this storm making landfall in this area in a day or so. It seems they were off," said Erza, brushing her long red hair out of her face.

Mirajane did the same with her white-blond hair, only to have to do it again a second later. Finally she just pulled it back into a pony tail and asked, "Why did you have to bring her along? We wouldn't even need to do this if it had been just you and me, Harry-kun."

"I'm not on a team and I'm not S-Classed," Harry shrugged. "Anyway, you're right, Erza, the storm won't hit until two days from now. This here?" he gestured to the storm currently raging around them, "Isn't even a tropical storm. It's just a standard thunderstorm that's common for this area. I recognize the taste of the wind. A hurricane, on the other hand, is a whole different matter." He quickly took off into the air and was soon eating the storm.

Lightning struck him, but he merely caught it in his hands and swallowed it as quick as it struck. Once the lightning and thunder had stopped, he disappeared into the cloud layer and things got weird for a minute. The clouds started to spin more rapidly, until one could actually see a vortex, going _up_ higher into the sky. In short order, it looked more like water going down a drain, but it was dark clouds going up into the sky. Before too much longer however, the blue sky appeared and only a few puffy white clouds remained as the sun shown clearly and the wind died down to a bare minimum. Harry flew back down to the girls, brimming with energy.

"OK, that gave me enough to get us there and finish the job, but I'm going to want to come back for that hurricane in two days. Hope the folks here appreciate the extra day of sunlight I gave them for free," he laughed and grabbed both girls arms.

"How is it you can eat a whole storm, but Natsu can only handle a small amount of fire?" Erza asked.

Harry shrugged as he focused on his destination and his blue and silver magic circle appeared beneath them. "He's only mastered the basics, and I'm going to be burning off more than half of what I just ate in this Gate here," he answered, "And besides, I do a lot more than just refill my magical energy with a full on storm. What did Master call it again? Oh yeah! I maximize my potential. Basically means I make it so I'm as strong as I can be all of the time without having to power up."

"What does that even mean?" Mirajane snapped at him. Harry just shrugged and then activated his Gate.

The magic circle appeared and three bright blue rings circled them, making them transparent with the first, disappeared with the second, and gone with the third. Several hundred miles away, in the middle of the town square of the village they were rescuing, a magic circle appeared and then ejected three energy rings, by the third pass the Fairy Tail wizards had arrived, and Harry was on his knees, gasping and sweating.

"Yeah, I'm definitely stopping by to get that hurricane on our way back," he gasped.

"We don't have time for that," Mirajane said, her voice lacking its usual sarcastic bite.

"Indeed," said Erza.

Harry looked up and noticed that he had dropped them off in the middle of the village, as he'd intended, but what he had not planned on was the entirety of the _Ouroburos Hydra_ guild surrounding them and had lethal spells already primed and aimed at them.

"Well... bloody hell," Harry cursed, got to his feet and used what remained of the power he'd just devoured.

"_Dragon Force_!" he screamed as power exploded from him, and he transitioned into Dragon Force mode. All of the spells shot at them were stopped by the vortex of power and wind and lightning that Harry had put around them as he powered up, either absorbing the elemental spells, or knocking aside everything else.

"_Kanso_!" Erza called, and was soon bearing her Heavens Wheel Armor.

"_Take Over: Satan Soul_!" Mirajane snarled, transforming into her demon self.

"At last count," Harry told the others, "Ouroburos Hydra had a little over three hundred members. First one to one hundred wins, and then gets to help out whoever is behind."

"DEAL!" the S-Class mages shouted and immediately jumped into melee. Not about to fall behind, Harry started them off by taking a deep breath and shouting, "_Arashiryu no HOKO_!"

Ten minutes later...

"I won!"

"No, it is clear that I defeated 105 of the foes before either of you, I am the clear winner."

"Like HELL! I won! You wanna fight over it!"

"Any subsequent battle will not change the facts."

Harry sighed and chose to ignore the bickering girls behind him, instead approaching the Village Elder and presented the job request. They were all immensely grateful, in spite of the fact that their village essentially no longer existed, but they were willing to work to rebuild. Right on time, after all the fighting was over with, the Army showed up in force.

Thankfully by then, Erza and Mirajane had stopped arguing long enough to collect their reward from the now defunct Dark Guild's leftover resources, and Harry collected the magical items that had piqued his interest in the first place. For an S-Rank job, it was over in less than a few hours, which was a new record Harry believed. Sadly, Erza and Mirajane both burst his bubble by reporting that the record was still held by the Master of the Guild when he was still just a member of the guild, and his team completed an S-Rank job in 32 minutes and 43 seconds. And that counts from the moment they picked the job off the board to coming back in to report it was successful. So far, only three teams had ever come close, only missing it by a few minutes or even just a few seconds.

"I thought S-Rank jobs were supposed to be potentially lethal?" the ten-year-old asked the teenagers.

"It's why S-Class mages are the only ones that can go on them," Mirajane told him, her arms held suggestively behind her neck. When he glanced back at her, she winked. He smirked and winked back. She blushed and looked away. (Hey, just because he was ten years old, almost eleven, didn't mean he didn't know how to play the game.)

"There are also two S-Class mages and an over achieving Dragon Slayer that could take the S-Class exam whenever he wanted to, and also the fact that we took them by surprise," said Erza.

"The only surprise was that we were so much better than them, and that they were probably only expecting two instead of three," Mirajane argued. "They were there and ready for us, waiting. They had even prepared attacks the moment we arrived."

"Yeah, uh, that was my fault," Harry raised his hand and admitted sheepishly.

"What did you do?" both girls asked in unison, glaring sparks at each other afterward.

"Like I told Erza, I have to reserve the job a week in advance," Harry explained, "So, I sent a messenger ahead announcing that I would be coming, what time I expected to be there by, and where I planned to arrive."

Erza and Mirajane exchanged incredulous looks and shouted at him, "WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?"

Harry just shrugged, "It seemed like a good idea at the time. Anyway, you two go ahead and get started. I'm going to go catch that hurricane now. I'll catch up when I can, and I should have enough energy to get us all the way back to Fairy Tail, or at least Magnolia."

"Now wait a minute!" Mirajane shouted.

"Harry, explain why you did that!" Erza ordered.

"Bye!" Harry waved as he Gated out, the three rings of energy flashing over him before he disappeared entirely.

"Ooo! I hate it when he does that!" Mirajane growled.

"Hmph," Erza crossed her arms and said nothing, but she was clearly peeved at her comrade's irresponsibility.

"Kids," they both muttered simultaneously. Then they glared at each other and the animosity continued to mount the further they walked.

Further to the West, and down by the coast, Harry took a few minutes to catch his breath after that last long-distance Gate. In all honesty, his magic power could really only handle close or mid-range Gates without any significant drain, but anything outside of 100 yards was going to take more magic out of him than he could easily replenish without major rest, or the power boost of a storm.

That was the true reason, he silently admitted to himself, that he wouldn't teach Natsu Gate magic. Natsu was only a few months older than him, but his magic power was at about half of what Harry himself had. If Natsu could use Gate, he'd be wanting to use it all the time and would try to use it to get to every job, and Natsu often had jobs that took him miles outside of Magnolia, places that often required a train or carriage to get to and from them. If Natsu, who had roughly half the magic power Harry had, were to travel hundreds of miles, like Harry had done, to sustain himself he'd either go into a coma, devour a tenth of the total food supply of all Fiore in one sitting, or he would need to devour a fire big enough that it would engulf all of Magnolia and all the surrounding woodlands as well. At a minimum.

Thunder boomed. Harry opened his eyes and looked up. The clouds were even darker, and the wind had picked up to roughly twice what it had been during that thunderstorm he'd eaten earlier. Frowning, Harry sniffed the air and took a good long look at the sky and the horizon out over the ocean.

It was odd. The storm shouldn't be hitting until the next day at the soonest, but it was already making landfall?

"Oh well," Harry shrugged and took off into the air. It must have picked up speed or something, he thought as he began to chow down on the storm clouds, sucking it up and converting it to magical energy as quickly as he could. He'd replenished his reserves after only a small amount, but the storm was still coming. If anything, it had gotten even more powerful, he noticed.

Anticipating the feast he was about to partake, Harry gleefully transformed into Dragon Force Mode and started circling the hurricane, eating up the edges and not stopping once. Unfortunately, he never noticed that his spin increased the storm's spin, and thus the power of the hurricane, though he was keeping it contained to a smaller area that just made it all the more dangerous. Until he gobbled up the last of it in one giant suction spin.

It was only after he finished that Harry had literally taken on more that he could swallow. Even with the magic he was burning through with Dragon Force and his other active magic, what he had just taken in would blast him apart from the inside out if he didn't find some way of releasing it.

He'd have to go back and get Erza and Mirajane later, he figured. If he Gated to Fairy Tail and then back to where Erza and Mirajane should be, that should burn off what he didn't need and then still have enough left over for one last Gate.

Focusing on '_Home_' in his mind, he cast the Gate spell, fully intending on appearing in Fairy Tail's Guild Hall and then move on to where Erza and Mirajane were. Instead, he felt _ALL_ of his magic going into the Gate spell, but by then it was too late.

The Magic Circle opened up and swallowed him up and then it exploded.

If he had further paid attention, Harry might have noticed his fellow Fairy Tail wizard, Mystogan on the cliff, and that the storm had a funny aftertaste. But then again, that funny aftertaste added a real kick to the storm and is what made him lose himself and devour the whole thing, where normally he would have stopped after getting his fill and no more. And he never would have tried to eat a storm while in Dragon Force mode, that was just crazy, but crazy is what he'd been.

Because, Harry hadn't just eaten a hurricane-class storm, he'd devoured and absorbed the largest _Anima_ sent into Earthland to date.

Mystogan raced back to the Guild. He had to inform the Master of this.

_AN: Review if you want to see this continued, or even as a standalone story._


	55. Challenges

_Challenge 1:_"What If Petunia had married ANYbody else besides Vernon Dursley?"

"John Steed"

_Summary:_ _Petunia never married Vernon Durlsey, instead a chance encounter introduced her to John Steed, and she becomes his latest, and his last civilian partner, changing her life, and her nephew's life forevermore._

John Steed met Petunia Evans in the market one afternoon while in the midst of chasing a rather dangerous individual. The chase had in fact gone on for quite some time and had taken them more than ten blocks from where it had originally began.

No one could guess that this dangerous individual was actually a time traveler from another dimension, seeking to harness the power of an artifact John Steed and his Secret Organization had procured a short time before, which would allow him to return to his home time and dimension, but at the cost of destroying the planet he would be leaving, and eventually that entire universe. John Steed merely knew him as a thief willing to kill people to get what he wanted and therefore was planning on locking him away for the rest of his life.

And yet, because of this dangerous individual's existence in the dimension and time line he had appeared in, things were going to turn out very differently than they perhaps should have.

In the original, unaltered time line, that this maniac was not aware he was changing (and even if he were, he really wouldn't care), John Steed went over some reports and had tea and practiced his skills to keep himself sharp, a day off in other words. Petunia Evans would have done her shopping and bumped into a man that would introduce her to another friend, who was secretly gay and about six months from coming out of the closet, and during those six months he and Petunia would have dated until he revealed the truth to her, and she would then turn to her only remaining prospect. A young, successful, if rather mean-spirited and arrogant business professional named Vernon Dursley.

Fortunately for the entire world, and then some, right as John Steed chased this homicidal maniac from another dimension and time through the market place, said maniac crashed into a number of people and overturned quite a few stalls and fruit stands. One of which was the cabbage cart where Petunia Dursley was destined to meet the person that would have introduced her to her future gay boyfriend, leaving her with only the prospect of Vernon Dursley.

Petunia was never one to get involved really. Never had been. And yet, her estranged sister had come with her to the market place that afternoon, trying to reconsole their relationship as Lily was engaged to a boy she met at school and was planning on getting married soon.

Both young Evans girls saw the chase taking place, and one of them intended on staying back out of it, while the other was trying to subtly pull out a foot long stick from her dress, but suddenly the maniac, the one being chased, came right at them and bounced around a lot, ending in knocking a couple of barrels over onto the surprised red haired witch.

"LILY!" Petunia cried out as her sister was nearly crushed. Petunia couldn't believe it. All the power her sister had at her fingertips, all the amazing and terrible things she could do... and it couldn't protect her from a madman running through the market place causing and accident and nearly killing her?

Petunia, for the first time in a very long while, got angry. Angry on behalf of her sister.

The man chasing paused and helped, doing what he could to pull Lily free from the barrels and out of immediate danger, and then he quickly resumed the chase. Some more random and chaotic things happened, and the madman started to double-back.

Petunia saw him coming and saw red. Everyone was getting out of his way now, running away lest they get caught up and hurt like Petunia's sister had been. Petunia grabbed the nearest long and heavy object, which was an umbrella ironically, and hid behind a post. Right as the bad guy came around the corner, running past her, she swung hard and true and knocked the crazy killer flat on his back, where she then continued to pound and poke him as hard as she could with the umbrella. At some point, she wasn't quite sure when, he stopped squirming away and a strong masculine hand grabbed her by the wrist and her sister's voice finally penetrated the red haze that had consumed her mind.

And that was how John Steed and Petunia Evans first met.

They're first date wasn't until a few hours after their first mission, where Petunia assisted John Steed in preventing Britain from being the instigator of World War Three, as well as avenged one of her old friends from university who had been the victim of the thugs responsible for the whole plot in the first place.

John Steed had had former partners in the past, more than most of them civilians. A similar ratio showed how many of them were attractive young women, some of them single. Petunia, however, had an odd desire, a craving rather, to be considered "Normal" by everyone else. Which was rather odd, because she was anything but. Her sister was a powerful witch, her parents were hippies, and she was dating a secret agent who worked for a secret organization that nobody in the world would admit they knew about, let alone talked about. And she quite frequently went out and helped him on a number of his missions to protect Britain and all mankind in fact. What put the final nail in the "Normal" coffin was that her day job was as a reporter for the World Weekly News, London Office. She even had her own column on page five. However, she still never gave up in her quest to be "Normal" in her day-to-day life.

John Steed was invited to Lily's wedding, as Petunia's date, or Plus One as it's sometimes called. They had been dating for six months by that point. John Steed, on the day that she originally would have allowed Vernon Dursley to ask her out for their first date, asked her to marry him. They were married by the Captain of the Queen Victoria while in the midst of fighting terrorists trying to sink it. They moved into their home on Privet Drive in Little Whinging, Surrey in the winter of 1980. John's company moved them in, free of charge, and also installed all the extras; weapon caches, panic room, full surveillance and security system. They didn't even set foot in the place until sometime in September of 1981.

On November First, 1981, shortly after midnight, the alarms went off and Petunia barely managed to stop her husband from racing out, sword flashing and guns blazing, but only because she recognized the old man doing the talking. They listened in silence to the whole exchange between the magicals and Harry was in his Aunt's loving arms not even a whole minute after those monsters had left them on the front step.

Petunia, amidst caring for her orphaned nephew, spent the rest of the night briefing her husband and partner on the world her sister lived... used to live in. She then spent her considerable resources and experience as an Investigative Reporter for WWN, London Office tracking down the Truth. The remainder of the Death Eaters were found, made to talk, and then eliminated. The last one was vanquished on the eve of the anniversary of her sister's death. There were no more Dark Marks, and Petunia had come across a couple of Lethifold nests in her investigations and likewise managed to track where the wraith-remainder of Voldemort remained and introduced the two. Even if Voldemort's soul couldn't pass on, the Lethifolds and even a Dementor John Steed had somehow corralled would spend the rest of eternity munching on what remained of it.

Harry Potter was officially adopted and became Harry Steed in 1984 and was the oldest of five siblings, every last one of them magical and all the boys were perfect English Gentlemen, and the girls were just like their mother. Just with wands.

"Constantine"

_Summary: Petunia went to Hogwarts with Lily. Lily married James Potter right out of Hogwarts. Petunia met John Constantine while exploring Diagon Alley one evening. She ran away with him. Years later, Dumbledore shows up with Harry. Constantine makes sure to prepare his nephew for the battles ahead._

_Challenge 2_: "What if Harry wasn't Harry?"

Lord Voldemort recalled what had last happened to him only through a haze of pain. He and that simpering idiot Wormtail had moved on the Potter House, the first of three locations he would be attacking that Halloween Night. And no matter how much of a cowardly fool the little rat was, Voldemort did have to admit it was rather cunning how the Gryffindor spy had managed to make himself the Secret Keeper for both the Potters and the Longbottoms.

He remembered walking up to the house and finishing off that annoying Potter, he got in his way far too many times. Then he made his way up the stairs, his promise to Snape annoyingly fresh in his mind, and he really did try to keep it. Never let it be said that Lord Voldemort wasn't a keeper of his word. Or at least tried to be.

The woman just wouldn't get out of his way, so instead he killed her and got her out of his way. He then focused on destroying the one that was destined to destroy him. And then...

Pain, so much pain, like every particle of him was being ripped and torn in half. And then there was something trying to smother him, to push him into something small and confining with no way to move or live or do anything at all. So he pushed back and smothered whatever it was before it even had a chance. He felt the fight, and life drain out of it in a matter of moments and then it was beyond his reach. Lord Voldemort had won the final struggle for his soul and didn't even notice what happened until days later.

He was in the boy!

He didn't know how it was possible, or why it had happened, but days later, Lord Voldemort woke to find himself in the arms, _in the arms_, of a horse-faced woman and a walrus man and they were talking about him, the big clue was they kept gesturing in his direction, but they were shouting about "Potter" and the horse-faced woman's sister. And then the woman held up a letter and said a name that made everything else make sense once more.

Dumbledore.

Of course it would be Dumbledore. Looking down at himself, he saw that he truly was in the body of the child he had been trying to kill. An odd thought struck him. Was he the soul fragment he'd been trying to create that night? Was the true Lord Voldemort out there somewhere, celebrating his genius victory over his enemies by possessing the one that would destroy him with a fragment of his own soul?

But no, Voldemort decided. If it had been him, and _it was_, he wouldn't have allowed Dumbledore, under any means, to keep the child with him. No, he would have kept the child, maybe given him to Lestrange or Malfoy, or Carrow, or one of the other married couples under his command to raise him as his own heir. After all, who's more loyal to yourself than yourself?

No, obviously something had gone wrong. However, being in the body of an infant, not yet a toddler wouldn't allow him to go about finding the answers he sought. Feeling around his mouth with his new tongue, he discovered that he didn't even have all of his teeth yet, and that would make speaking rather difficult. He didn't even have his wand, and from what he was sensing, what magic he did have had been seriously depleted by something, and it was taking a long time to regenerate.

Say what you will about Lord Voldemort's temper and intolerance for failure, he was a patient man. He'd had to be to get as far as he did in his conquest of the Wizarding World and as powerful as he had become. Therefore, he resolved himself to wait for his answers. At least until he could walk and talk and use magic again. He would wait and bide his time and then these muggles would pay for every indignity he suffered when he finally left. Although it would be nice to be catered on hand and foot, seeing as he was an infant and that's what parents did for infants.

And then the Dursley's shoved him into the cupboard under the stairs.

Ten years. Ten long, painful, aggravating, torturous years!

Lord Voldemort, aka Harry Potter, glared at the Hogwarts letter he held in his hand after retrieving the mail for his "family". It would have burned if he wished it to, but instead, he merely slipped it under the crack to his "room" on his way back to the kitchen.

Ten years, and it's not until his Hogwarts Letter arrives that he'll finally be able to leave this wretched anti-magic household and get back to the real world and finally get some answers!

Voldemort had lived here, at the mercy of these muggles for more than ten years, and at first he'd tried to assert proper control over them the moment he could speak properly and use his magic. He'd always been able to use the wandless variants of the Cruciatus and Imperius curses, although they were limited to a mere pain curse and compulsion charm in comparison of power. He received the first beating of his two remembered lives at the age of two and a half years old, ten months after he'd been stuck at the Dursley's.

They made him their errand boy, their slave. And they made sure their offspring knew it too. Beatings were quite regular and if not for his magic and knowledge of proper medical spells and the infinite patience to learn how to focus his magic without a wand he would have been dead before he was five years old. As it was, they called him freak, and he called them by the rather inspired nicknames of Aunt Horsey, Uncle Walrus and Whaley. He wasn't good enough at properly focusing his magic until he was seven years old or so and had been in school for a few months.

He was able to Apparate, though only for a mile or so, at age eight. He was good enough at every healing spell he'd ever known by age nine that injuries healed as they happened, so the next time his Uncle Walrus beat him, or that Whaley punched him on the playground, the blood trickled back into the wound and the would closed in front of their eyes. Same with broken bones. They reset themselves with a loud crack and then the cracks in them disappeared as though they'd never been.

Lord Voldemort then did the impossible at the premature age of ten years old, and cast a fully formed, though improperly focused, yet still a proper spell just by waving his hands. It was the Protego Charm, true, but it was a proper spell, and Voldemort had seen what he'd done in order to get it to work. It took an inhuman amount of focus and control over his magic, but he'd done it.

And now, finally, just a month before he turns eleven, he gets his Hogwarts Letter and the opportunity to be rid of this place forever!

Voldemort waited until after dinner that day and everyone else in the house was asleep, just to be sure, and only then did he open his letter and read through the contents. He didn't even remember the last time he'd read this, nor however long ago it was. What he was sure of though was that given how anti-magic his relatives were, he wouldn't even bother asking them to take him into the city for it. He snuck out of the cupboard, not too hard when you can Disapparate, and the shorter the range the easier it was to do, and then silently made his way up the stairs and struck all three of his relatives with the strongest Sleeping Curse he could imagine. It took him five minutes of just standing there, pointing his hands at them and focusing on the magic, for each of them, but the spells were cast. Then he went to sleep on the bed in Whaley's spare bedroom.

When he woke, he made himself breakfast, and then locked all the doors and windows and turned off all the power and the air conditioning unit, and then Disapparated outside of the house and called for a taxi, which he paid for with the cash he'd taken from Uncle Walrus's wallet of course.

Turns out the goblins, greedy and cruel creatures that they were, were also creatures of their word. At the time, Lord Voldemort remembered being apprehensive at setting up password-protected, rather than key-protected, vaults for his more loyal minions as well as himself. Given that he didn't have his family... that is to say "Harry Potter's" vault key, he was rather glad of the precaution all the same. He claimed ownership easily enough, and from there drained all the satellite accounts and focused all the wealth into his alone, while still maintaining all the income that had been going to those extra vaults, now all going into his alone.

The train ride was similar to how he remembered it being, though there were more students, more children present than there had been in the years that he'd been the most active. He met the offspring of the Weasley clan. As well as Lucius's spawn, who fell far from the tree it would seem. A far more interesting person, however, was the other potential candidate for fulfilling the prophecy about him. Neville Longbottom.

The muggleborn witch, Granger-something, was intriguing, if only because she knew more about what had happened that night ten years ago than he did. Most of it was pure speculation of course, but that told more of what Dumbledore wanted the world to believe, and that told Voldemort what his plans for the future could entail. Voldemort decided, amidst a Weasley, a Longbottom, and a muggleborn, that he too needed to start planning for the future.

_Hello again,_ the Sorting Hat whispered into Voldemort's ear. _Been a while since I last saw you._

Voldemort scoffed and thought back at the annoying enchanted hat, _Return me to my rightful place, my true home, Hat! I'm bored enough as it is, at least with some true cunning around me, things may get interesting once again._

_Sorry, no can do. GRYFFINDOR_!

"Wait, what?" Harry Potter exclaimed as Professor McGonagall pulled the Sorting Hat off his head.

"Use the boy! Use the boy!"

"Come here, Potter!"

Voldemort didn't even bother, merely using his magic, which had been considerably boosted since he'd once again had access to magical potions and the means to conduct a certain power-enhancing blood ritual. It required the blood of a virgin, and while that may have been impossible fifty years ago for him, he'd long since rid himself of such desires and was quite content to use his own blood for it. The ropes the pitiful Defense Professor had bound him with dissolved at his command and he walked up to the mirror. Truly, he had no real desire for the Stone hidden in the mirror. And while it would be nice to have, at least to keep it out of Dumbledore's hands, seeing as he already had youth and wealth, and he certainly didn't need the Stone for it, he wasn't the least bit surprised when the Stone appeared in his pocket. Satisfied, Voldemort turned to rectify this rather pitiful mistake.

"Now then," Harry said to Quirrel, "that's out of the way. I think we can dispense with the charade. Come out spirit. We need to talk."

"How dare...!" Quirrel raised his wand.

Voldemort didn't even bother drawing his wand, merely flicking one finger and sent the body flying against the far wall. "I wasn't talking to you, shell. I was speaking to my other self. I know you're there. Come forth. We need to discuss what is to happen next."

The turban fell off and revealed what had become of the remainder of the original Lord Voldemort.

"See... what it is... you have wrought... Potter?" the face on the back of Quirrel's head rasped.

"See what it is that you have created, my other self," Voldemort stepped closer and flashed his eyes from green to red. "Whether intentional or not, and whether you are the fragment I was aiming to put into a horcrux that night, or not, here we stand. Lord Voldemort and the wraith that was Lord Voldemort."

"How...?" the face rasped, shock in all of it's features.

"Truly, I know not," Voldemort replied. "Either you or I are the fragment we were prepared to split off with the death of the child, and either that fragment, or what remained of the whole attached itself to the only living creature still in that house. Now, which do you think is more possible? That a mere soul fragment overwhelmed the already existing soul in this body and took over rather than be stuffed away... or the true soul of Lord Voldemort, reborn anew? In the body of his enemy's greatest weapon?"

Both Voldemorts laughed until a question came up that needed to be answered.

"So... what now? Would you share that body... with me?" the face asked.

Harry smiled, his eyes still red. "I have a much better way of doing it. Your way," he held up one hand, "you possess me, damaging the body, and perhaps even consume me, thereby destroying everything I've learned and discovered about this body and the power I have cultivated in it. Putting you right back where you are in perhaps as little time as a year, maybe two if you never use magic so much as once." He held up his other hand, this one holding the Stone, "My way, fuses the two of us together as one, integrating our memories with one another, and perchance increasing the power within this body by twofold or more, all without damaging or destroying the body and giving Lord Voldemort, essentially, a new lease on life."

He lifted and raised each of his hands, mimicking a scale, before finally holding up the one with the Stone in it.

"What... needs to be... done?" the face asked.

"Well, given what I've discovered so far about _Dumbledore's_ plans, we need him to still believe you, the wraith, is still on the loose. It will focus his attentions on the "real Voldemort"," he made air-quotes, "being out there somewhere, and draw attention away from me. Well, us, but soon us will be me."

Suddenly, both Voldemorts grinned rather darkly as the same idea occurred to both together.

An hour later, Dumbledore arrived on the scene to find Harry Potter passed out in front of the ashy remains of Professor Quirrel, signs of Voldemort's spirit form having drained Harry and escaped the wards evident.

Voldemort spent about a week in the Hospital Wing, integrating his other self and making plans.

Voldemort opened the door to the Chamber he hadn't seen in more than fifty years. He left the buffoon and Ron behind him, under a cave-in and walked right in like he owned the place.

He was met with warm air, music, and the sound of hissing. Dumbledore truly had no clue. No clue at all.

"Harry! Please! Help me! Save me!" Ginny Weasley screamed. Her voice was joined by others, including Hermione Granger, who was supposed to be petrified in the Hospital Wing, and every other virgin witch at Hogwarts.

The original power-enhancing ritual Harry had been undertaking on every full moon since coming to Hogwarts had taken him as far as it could. It was time to divest himself of what made his blood a virgin. But no need to waste it on a bit of fun here and there. No, something so precious and useful needs to be exchanged for something equally precious and useful. A hundredfold expansion of his power and a hundred loyal beyond loyal witch slaves should fit the bill nicely.

Harry, aka Lord Voldemort, accepted the Time Turner from one of the masked individuals that were milling about and ensuring that the sacrifices were secured. He read the list of instructions that came with it, an itinerary for what he was to do with it, and nodded. He then put it on and disappeared. Only then did all of the masked figures remove their masks, and robes, and well pretty much everything they were wearing, revealing that every single last one of them was Harry Potter.

The orgy, for that's what it was in the end, lasted for one hour, and the actual ritual part of it barely longer than ten minutes after it had concluded. After that, all but one of the Voldemorts disappeared, using their Time Turners to go back in order to properly participate in the ritual. He then sent all his slaves, bound by blood, magic and soul to his, through the secret passages, the pipes the Basilisk had been using to get all over the school, to their various rooms, or other places they were supposed to be at, still naked and dripping juices and blood down their thighs.

Idly, he wondered why he hadn't done this before as he dressed himself and made his way back to the cave-in. Ginny, of course, came with him, seeing as the whole reason they came down here was to rescue Ron's sister. As she clung to him, no thought in her head save that of properly serving him, Voldemort grinned with overwhelming glee as he thought of how easy taking over the world would be now that he had a sure way to maintain loyalty in his minions.

END?

_Challenge 4_: "What if, in defeating Voldemort, Harry (or whoever) did something that actually stripped and/or destroyed ALL Magic within the Wizarding World?"

"_Harry Potter Destroys The World...Again"_

"Harry, are you sure you want to do this?" Hermione asked, wringing her hands as they stood over the simmering cauldron.

"What other choice do I have Hermione?" he asked, fastening the last of his battle armor into place. "Every single time I beat him, things get worse less than a decade later. My children, no matter who I have those children with, wind up living in a world that makes what we went through look like this side of paradise."

"Yes, but... you've said that, you've come back before, what's to stop you from finding some way of preventing all of this from happening?" she tried one last desperate plea.

Harry sighed and gave his oldest living friend a kiss on the lips. She squeaked in surprise and then melted in his arms. When he finally let her go, she was flushed and panting, her eyes dialated.

"Their names are Daniel, and Emma Jean. We always adopt Pansy's offspring with Malfoy and his name is Hamlet. By the time Emma Jean graduates Hogwarts, she has no rights, and has to get a G.E.D. in America before I bribe her way into Oxford, where she is either then sequestered by the British Government because she's magical, or branded and sent to an enslavement camp because she's muggleborn, or a half-blood. Hamlet always goes to Gryffindor but because of his blood line, he either gets ostracized and commits suicide before Sixth Year, or runs away from us and goes Dark and is the one to enslave Emma Jean. Daniel dies in the war that comes less than thirty years after Voldemort dies. I have tried every variation that can be done with the power at my fingertips. This is my last option."

Hermione, tears streaming down her face now, calmed her breathing and nodded once. She produced a flask, filled it and handed it to him, as well as a crystal necklace. He accepted both and then gave her one last kiss goodbye.

"Will... will we win?" she asked, sobbed really.

"We'll survive, that's more important," was his only reply before he left the tent.

A few hours later, it was all over. As always, the final stand happened at Hogwarts. Voldemort's forces gathered, the last defenders of the light came to oppose him, and then the battle ensued. Harry destroyed the last of the Horcruxes, again, having already destroyed Nagini before the battle ever drew lines thanks to a Christmas trap that Harry turned on Voldemort quite easily after so many times. Harry fought at the front lines, gathering the last few things he needed for his plan to work. And then Riddle gave his final ultimatum, Harry give himself up, or the last few defenders be killed.

Harry went out and gathered the very last thing he needed. Voldemort's wand.

He already had the True Elder Wand, not to mention a few hundred other magical weapons that Voldemort couldn't even dream of, seeing as most of them wouldn't even be conceived of for the next ten years or more. Once he had the second of Fawkes' feathers, he cast the spell. Voldemort's final words were classic, which just made them all the sweeter.

"Harry...? What have you done?"

Funny, that was the same thing Dumbledore said when he became the Master of the Elder Wand.

"I've killed this generation of magic," Harry answered the simple question. "I've collected the blood and tissue samples of every wizard bloodline alive today. As well as base samples of every magical creature that still exists. And with that last spell I just cast..." he shrugged and threw down his weapons, "...they're all going to lose their magic over the next twenty-four hours. Or did you not notice that it's midnight? Well it was, when I cast the spell a few moments ago."

"That's... impossible!" Voldemort gasped, his homunculus body rapidly growing weaker with each passing moment. "Magic... cannot... be destroyed!"

"True," Harry held up an empty flask. "Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, only transformed and moved about here and there. This flask contained a potion that contained the sourceblood of the first magic user that ever existed. Mixed with everything else I put in it, that made it the most magically pure potion ever to have existed in all of history. And just after sacrificing my own magic to quote/unquote "destroy" all of magic, I drank that potion. And a bit of a science lesson for you Tommy, nature abhors a vacuum. That spell _will_ make it so magic cannot be used by any of those beings I attached to the spell. But all that magic has to go somewhere. And where better than the most magically potent potion in all of history?"

"No..." the decaying husk gasped one final time.

"That's right, all of Magic is now in me. And I can't even use it. Wonder what it's going to be like to be immortal. See, a few years from now, something really bad happened to my kids and I did something really stupid. I made an Unbreakable Vow to fix it. Only, being the Master of Death, the Fates decided to help me along rather than take my life for being unable to uphold such a vow, and thus they started this whole time loop thing. Whenever I die or fail to uphold the Vow in some way or another, well, then I reset back to my First Year at Hogwarts, too late to do a god damned thing!"

"There's only one way to fix it now, you see," Harry said to the crumbling dust that had once been the Dark Lord Voldemort, "I have to make it so there is no more magic anymore. Only ordinary people with ordinary problems. And above all else, no more Hogwarts, and now I can't have children anymore. I'm Immortal. Because all that magical power had to go somewhere. Part of the price for being Immortal is that I'm sterile. And as for any new muggleborn coming about, well, either they'll have magic and start our society over from scratch, or they'll be like me, having too much magical power to use that all it can do is heal our bodies and extend our lifetimes beyond the scope of any human."

Harry left the forest and moved on. Nobody ever saw him again, and the Magical World ceased to exist. Dragons died out, phoenixes left this world, centaurs and merpeople either turned to humans or horses and fish. Giants shrunk, trolls and goblins either interbred with humans or died out, making for some unique regional features in some areas of the world for a few generations before even that disappeared. All other magical creatures either transitioned into their non-magical counterparts, or died out.

And the world became ordinary once more. No more magic, anywhere for anyone, dark, light, or anything inbetween. Well, except for the Immortals, but that's another story.

END...

_Challenge 5_: "What if Naruto and Hinata were both successfully kidnapped by Cloud all those years ago? What if they LIKED living in Cloud?"

The night of the festival, celebrating the peace treaty between Kumo and Konoha was a boisterous one.

Never before in Konoha's history had so many of its ninja been so _drunk_! Thus a few people, in the wrong place at the wrong time, said the wrong things. Thankfully they wouldn't remember that they had said it and neither would their companions they said it to, otherwise they might have to be charged with treason and executed for violating several laws the Hokage had set up a number of years previously. For that matter, neither would the random ANBU and "on-duty" ninja that were supposed to be guarding a certain section of Konoha. But one person heard it, and would never forget it. And thus the one person that was never supposed to know one vital secret about himself and his family, at least not until he had graduated Konoha's Ninja Academy and become an official ninja, learned that secret and having no friends and no one to stand up for him to those drunk naysayers, well he reacted rather badly.

At the same time, a plot was being hatched by the Diplomatic party that had been sent by Kumo, the Hidden Cloud Village. They had been trying for generations to get any advantages they could, and the fabled Byakugan was just one of them. For a time, the plan had been extremely basic, kidnap the heir of the Hyuuga clan, get her back to Kumo as fast as possible and restart the war while training her to be loyal to Kumo and breeding out her blood and children to be a new clan, all loyal to Cloud and the Land of Lightning. And then, on the way there to Konoha for the signing of the Peace Treaty, they came across a mercenary clan, unassociated with any of the ninja villages. This mercenary clan had a very unique ability, one that the instigator of the plot to kidnap the Hyuuga heir found invaluable. They could turn themselves into perfect copies of anyone they touched, even memories.

Some threatening, some money changing hands, and some very stealthy planning had the Hyuuga heir, Hinata stolen from her bed and hidden away in the luggage of the Kumo delegation, and the fake ninja in a bag while the decoy 'kidnapped her'. 'Hinata' then developed a flu later that same week and died of it, but was actually retrieved by her true clan.

During the actual kidnapping, there had been a complication. A young boy had run away from all the drunks making fun of him, that had told him he was a demon, specifically the demon fox Kyuubi. And he just so happened to stumble across the Kumo-nin stuffing an unconscious Hinata in their trunk, literally. Before he could utter a sound, he too was unconscious and loaded into the trunk right beside her.

_10 Years Later_

D looked over at his partner and winked at her. Not that he could tell with her pupil-less lavender orbs but he got the impression that she rolled her eyes at him in reply.

"This is stupid, Double-Dee," she remarked, her natural shyness having been eroded away from the years of intense training she'd undergone with him. His enthusiasm for life and compassion for other people is what kept her sane through the worst of it, so the least she could do was be honest with him when he was being stupid. "You're going to get us into trouble. Again."

"Heheh," the blond haired, blue eyed boy laughed. He was known as Double-D because the first true technique he ever learned that wasn't some means of controlling his power and chakra, was the Kagebunshin no jutsu. Since then, shadow clones had become something of his signature and he used them for absolutely everything. "Come on, Babe-Eee, it'll be fun!"

The blue haired, lavender eyed girl snorted at the name of her handle. She remembered she used to have a real name, but she had long since forgotten what it was. Just because she looked younger than she actually was and everyone said she would "grow into a babe" one day, while still looking like an entirely different kind of babe, was no reason to call her 'Baby' all of the time!

"Can I ever get you to stop calling me that?" she grumbled, already moving into position.

"Sure," he grinned, "Tell me what your real name is."

She smiled and sighed. Double-Dee didn't remember his real name either, but that was OK. They had both decided to embrace their current calling as secret weapons of Kumo. With Yugito and Bee-sama teaching them, and the Godaime Raikage coming into office soon, things were better than anything that had been before. That much they did remember.

"Ready?" he asked when they were both in position.

She didn't reply, other than a raised eyebrow, as though silently asking, '_Can anyone ever be ready for your plans?'_, but Dee took it as an affirmative and shouted, "NOW!"

A few hours later, the ANBU had finally tracked down the two special shinobi, who honestly were only caught because they were too busy laughing to run away and further, and brought them both before the Raikage. The giant continued working with his ton+ weights, even as the heavier weights around his forearms restricted his movements, while the two young ninja silently waited before him.

"Do you two..." the Raikage grunted, "...know how much... trouble you've caused... for the village?"

Eee rolled her pupil-less eyes and scoffed. Dee sighed and put his arms casually behind his head, like he was about to take a nap standing up.

"I see that you do," the Raikage observed, actually pausing in his reps. They both returned to attention.

A, the Godaime Raikage, grunted as he resumed his weight training. He loved his father, he truly did, but the man was absolutely off his rocker when he made his plans regarding these two. The only attachments they had to the village was their personal trainers, who took care of them like they were family in spite being instructed to never let it get personal. And that meant none of them ever got to leave the Village, seeing as the Godaime refused to let his brother, Bee, or the Nibi Jinchuuriki leave the safety of the village for any reason.

As he was contemplating this, his gaze fell across his desk where the notification of the next Chuunin Exams was to be held. It was being held in Konoha this year.

"Hm..." the Raikage mused.

"We're going to the Chuunin Exam? In Konoha? With Yugito-neechan as our Jounin Sensei? And Cee as our third teammate?" The questions were asked one after the other, with the two children alternating who spoke when, creating a ping pong effect with the necks of the all the adults standing in front of them. When all the adults nodded in the affirmative, they were then treated to a level of noise on par with any explosion created by chakra.

"YAAAYYY!" Dee and Eee cheered, jumping up and down.

_Introductions_

"Hey brat! Watch where you're going!" Kankuro growled, picking the brown haired kid up by his scarf.

"Leave him alone Kankuro, he's just a kid," his sister said.

"Shut up, Temari! I'll handle this!" the pupeteer snapped back.

"Hey!" a sharp voice snapped out. "Leave him alone!"

The two Suna genin turned and saw a pink haired Konoha kunoichi standing at the end of the alley, fists on her hips. On either side of her was a pale boy with a belt of scrolls at his waist, and a pale boy with his black hair done up so it looked like the tail end of a duck.

"You're from Suna," the pink haired girl said in a soft voice, sounding curious and surprised. "What are you doing here in Konoha?"

Kankuro and Temari blinked. If she hadn't been the one to shout, then who...?

Looking down, everyone was surprised to see Konohamaru no longer in Kankuro's grasp, instead he was in the grasp of another ninja that no one had noticed until just now. He was tall, his blond hair unkempt, his blue eyes flashing dangerously, and he was wearing a vivid orange jumpsuit under armor that was unique to Kumo. Across his forehead he wore the Kumo hitai-ate proudly. By his side, holding tightly to his savior, was Konohamaru.

The Konoha genin started, as did the Suna shinobi. Kankuro, always hating to be upstaged, took the bundle off his back.

"Kankuro, Temari, what are you doing?" a quiet voice growled from the shadow of the tree behind them. Both siblings froze and Kankuro quickly backed down.

In a Suna Shunshin, a redhaired boy with a huge gourd on his back appeared. "My apologies," he said and bowed once, and then gave some short commands to his older siblings, which were obeyed instantly. The Konoha genin with the duck style haircut tried to say something, but the Kumo-nin spoke up first.

"So, you guys are here for the Chuunin Exams too, huh? Good. I look forward to facing you," he then turned to the boy at his side, "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, thanks oniichan," the Third Hokage's grandson said, grateful.

"Best go home now. I'm sure your parents will be worried, especially your grandfather when these _responsible_ Konoha genin report this incident to their superior," he shot them a look, and then said goodbye to Konohamaru and vanished as quickly as he had appeared.

_First Phase_

Dee yawned and glanced up from his nap that the Konoha-nin's Killing Intent had put him in. He suppose he should at least fill in a few of the test questions before the dreaded tenth question. He reached out with a tendril of youkai chakra, as Bee had taught him until he'd touched both Cee and Eee with the invisible tail.

_Everybody online?_

He waited patiently for their responses.

_Online, Dee-san._

That was Cee, always the first to know what he was up to with his tenant's chakra.

_YOU TOOK A NAP? WHILE I HAD TO GET ALL THE ANSWERS? FOR __**BOTH**_ _OF YOU?_

Ah, Babe-E sounded a bit annoyed.

_Well, we could always fail out and try again next time?_

He restrained his laughter at the muted anger coming down the link and the next thing he knew both he and Cee both were being controlled by Eee's thoughts through the link and both had their tests filled out with the correct answers and turned over within moments. The advantage of having a teammate with superhuman chakra control and the Byakugan.

When the tenth question was asked, both Double-D and Babe-E had the gall to yawn in the proctor's face, raking his Killing Intent up quite a bit more. As such, quite a few more teams than there probably would have been initially, quit on the spot and just in time too as the next proctor crashed through the window and announced for them to follow her to the next phase of the test.

_Second Phase_

"So... how much of a head start should we give everyone else, you think?" Dee asked once they were in the so called Forest of Death. Compared to the forests of the Island Bee had taken him to when he was younger, this place was a walk in the park.

"None," Eee remarked, her Byakugan active. "There's a Rain Team not too far from here, looks like they're planning on ambushing that Konoha Team you keep hanging around."

"Can I help it if I think she's cute?" Dee shrugged, not even trying to defend himself.

"How about we try to beat the Suna team to the goal?" Cee suggested. "What with, what's-his-name on that team, they're bound to get their second scroll within a few minutes and then they could very well be there before the first hour is through. And personally, I'd rather spend the night indoors here, rather than outside with... well, you know."

Both his teammates shared a look, then shrugged and nodded their agreement. "Where's that Rain team?" Dee asked, already forming the cross-seal with his hands.

_Third Phase_

"Neji Hyuuga VS E of Kumo!" the proctor of the Third phase of the Chuunin Exam coughed.

"It is my destiny to win! No matter that you have stolen defective eyes, I shall avenge my comrade and retrieve those stolen Byakugan for the Hyuuga Clan of Konoha!" Neji pronounced, getting into a Jyuuken stance.

E just stared at the Konoha genin, a look her friends recognized all too well as that of annoyance. Extreme Annoyance, emphasis on the capital letters.

"These eyes, as you call them, are _mine_!" E shouted and then vanished. When everybody blinked, they saw her on the other side of Neji and already calmly walking up towards the stairs. She paused after a heart beat or two and turned to face the Hokage, who was in attendance. "My apologies for depriving Konoha of a potentially skilled warrior. But, he _annoyed_ me. And I detest people like him."

"The, cough..." the proctor tried to stop her, but suddenly his attention was brought back to the still standing Neji, who in fact hadn't moved at all. Until now that is, when his head, chest, heart, lower intestines, stomach, genitals, knees, elbows, forearms, wrists, hands, ankles, and finally eyeballs all exploded, in that order, in a gory mess of blood and other substances.

In the silence that followed, Dee's shout of, "Way to go Babe-E! Show that prick how it's done!" was like an explosion of sound. Most of the genin kunoichi spent the next few minutes proving they were more bulimic rather than anorexic, with the obvious exceptions being Temari (who was still a little pale) and Eee herself. More than a few of the other genin, however were just as affected, though not as obviously. Lee and Tenten were, as Neji's teammates, the most affected, with Tenten mixing tears with her vomit and Lee having a most unexpected reaction.

"Gai-sensei?" Lee said in a quiet voice.

"Yes, my... yes Lee?" Gai replied in a subdued tone in recognition of the situation.

"Am I evil for wanting to shout louder about Neji's death than I do about the Flames of Youth?"

"Erhrm, *cough*, Sai VS C of Kumo," the proctor announced the next fight.

"Did you really have to go _ALL _Out?" Dee asked his partner, not even bothering to watch C trounce the painter.

"He annoyed me," was her short answer.

"Yeah, but what was up with him thinking you'd stolen your eyes? That was kinda weird."

"Dunno," she shrugged and sighed as C took several hits he could have easily avoided, just so he wouldn't show off too much of his skill too soon. "He's already seen through that painter's jutsu, and probably identified a hundred different weaknesses now. Why doesn't he just end it?"

"Because he doesn't just want to find the weaknesses," Dee answered with a knowing smirk, "he wants to be able to add to his repertoire." As he said this part, C proved his point by pulling out a simple kunai and cutting himself on the finger before spitting on the wound and pulled out a scroll, doodling something that was probably supposed to be the Hachibi, but just looked like one ugly black squid that came to life off the scroll and flew through the air to land on Sai's face. C made an easy knockout of it after that.

"His taijutsu sucks," C commented as he bandaged his hand. "Interesting potential for a spying jutsu however."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, when is it going to be my turn already?" Dee loudly complained.

Several long matches later, in fact the next to last match of this phase of the exam, the proctor announced, "Gaara of the Desert VS Dee of Kumo!"

"FINALLY!" Dee yelled and was already on the floor, across from the sand user before anybody could blink.

"Are you here to validate my existence?" Gaara asked, a crazy look in his eye.

"Heck no! I'm here to prove that Nine always beats One, no matter what!" Dee grinned just as crazily.

C and E both blinked and shared a look with their Jounin Sensei, who subtly nodded her head.

"Oh boy, here we go," E grumbled, pulling out some heavier armor from sealing scrolls. C was doing the same, but all the armor was much thicker and he had a few shields of various types too.

The sand struck, only to find that the Dee standing in front of Gaara was the standard Illusionary Bunshin jutsu. The tension mounted as everyone waited for the real Dee to make his appearance. Fifteen long minutes later, he walked in from the main entrance, a snow cone in his hand.

"Wow, you have no patience, do you?" Dee joked.

"Did you...*cough*?" the proctor tried to ask.

"I just got here. Had my clone in place since I got so bored. He was supposed to dispel himself so I'd know I had to get back in time. I expected my clone to at least occupy him for..." Dee was suddenly crushed in a sand coffin.

"I wasn't finished," Dee said from right behind Gaara, nobody had seen him move, "... with that snow cone."

Gaara spun around, eyes wide, sand already moving from out of his gourd. A red cloak of pure chakra enveloped the boy from Kumo, a single tail flashing out behind him as the rest coalesced into the visage of a small human-shaped fox. Naruto punched Gaara in the gut and sent the Ichibi Jinchuuriki flying. All of the sand around him fled at the edge of where the cloak enveloped his body.

"Mother... WANTS YOUR BLOOD!" Gaara screamed.

Dee was suddenly in his face, and the sand could not touch him.

"Shukaku's a guy, dude. Stop calling him your mother," he whispered. "Now get serious and show me what you can really do."

Gaara transformed in sixty seconds flat, the gourd on his back pouring sand all over his body and forming the tail, and merging with his skin, turning him into a chibi-Ichibi. Dee, still cloaked in the single-tail chakra cloak, nodded approvingly and then clenched his fists and closed his eyes. A few moments later, his whole body lit up with golden light and his skin and clothes all turned to a yellow-orange-gold hue, marred only by the whiskered lines on his cheeks, his blazing red eyes, and what appeared to be a seal arrangement up and down his torso.

"There, now we're both going all out, without having our Beasts doing the fighting for us. Let's do this, DATTEBAYO!" Dee screamed and charged forward.

The Hokage was so stunned that he didn't even react to the simultaneous heart attack, stroke, and apoplexy he suffered at seeing his would-have-been heir, missing for ten years now, appear before him as a loyal _Kumo_ ninja! What had happened to Minato's Legacy? was his last thought as the Shinigami took him. He died with his eyes still staring and his jaw still dropped to the ground. Since he wasn't the only one staring in stunned disbelief, it wasn't until long after the fight was over that anybody even realized the Hokage had passed away.

The Chuunin Exams were canceled in light of this, well, that and the fact that the Battle of the Jinchuriki actually destroyed the whole building, twelve acres of the Forest of Death, and injured all the remaining Chuunin hopefuls, not to mention everyone else present at the time. Not even C or E got away unscratched, and Yugito found herself actually joining in when Gaara completely lost it and brought forth his Beast in full strength.

As such, nobody bothered to stop Naruto and Hinata from leaving Konoha for the second and final time, never to return again. Not even when, years later, there was a Shinobi Alliance to fight Akatsuki and all Five Ninja Villages joined forces with all of their allies amongst every other ninja village fought the forces of Orochimaru and Madara Uchiha.

END

_Challenge 6_: "What if Naruto became a master thief?"

"Leverage: Ninja Style"

_Summary: Hacker, Hitter, Thief, Grifter, Brains. In a world where corruption rules everything, where good people suffer while evil flourishes, sometimes to keep from being crushed, all you need is a little... Leverage._

Shikamaru Nara downed another shot of whiskey, ignoring everyone around him in the bar. Danzo was Hokage. The war was over, and Danzo's "emergency powers" were still in full effect. Shikamaru had been part of the tactical and espionage unit during the war, the head of his own division. As high as he ever wanted to rise until he was old enough to retire and die with dignity.

Danzo... Konoha had stripped that from him. He'd quit the day after he'd lost his son.

"Nara? Shikamaru Nara-san?" a voice called for his attention.

He listened to the merchant's proposal and given that the job was going to be up against Konoha's new "insurance policy" for protection, he was intrigued. The clincher though was when he mentioned who was going to be in charge of security for the facility, and ultimately to blame when it all came to ruin. The man responsible for his son's death.

"OK, we're on the count," Shikamaru said over the coms. "Five, Four, Three..."

"DATTEBAYO!" a blond streak raced across the roof.

"He's gone!" Lee reported over the coms.

"Damnit!" Shikamaru grabbed his binoculars and watched as the blond thief dove off the top of a building, held up by only a wire rig that he was boasting only moments before he'd made himself.

"All right, Lee, Hinata, get in position," Shikamaru ordered. "Naruto, no cutting, use the polymer."

"Let's go get us a Sakura," Shikamaru said with a knowing smirk, leading the way out of the apartment.

"What the hell is a Sakura?" Lee asked the empty room.

"OK, she is bad, I mean, really bad," Hinata remarked, her eyes wide as she watched the display in front of her.

"Is she sick or something? Like, up here, in the head?" Naruto asked, unable to take his eyes off the train wreck of acting taking place in front of them.

"This, is not her stage," Shikamaru assured his team, and then lead them around back to the Employee's Entrance.

After the show, Sakura exited and saw who was waiting for her. "Well, well, what do we have here?" she asked, amused more than anything else at the moment.

"I need your help. Got a job for you. You interested?" Shikamaru asked.

"I'm not in that line of work anymore," she told him. "I'm an honest citizen now."

He smirked and replied, "I'm not."

"Now this, I have to see."

"Shouldn't I be playing the computer person?" Hinata asked, her hands already flying over the keyboards as she hacked into the server and took control of the computer stations and accounts they needed to.

"No, I want you to actually _be_ the computer person," Shikamaru told her, pacing just behind her.

Then Sakura approached the mark, and Hinata couldn't hold back a grimace as she said, "Here comes the mountain of suck." And then they listened in as Sakura expertly played the mark and got him out of the building. "I don't understand, she's not terrible!"

"Sakura Haruno is be best actress on the planet... when she's breaking the law," Shikamaru remarked.

Meanwhile, Lee, using every caricature of a stereotypical geek he could think of, distracted the secretary by pretending to be the computer person, while Naruto snuck into the mark's office and planted what they needed. And maybe taking the cash stash he'd discovered in a number of hiding places all over the office. In and out in less than a minute, giving Lee the tongue and eye through the glass before leaving as stealthily as he'd entered.

"Say hello to the Uchiha bastard when you see him," Shikamaru hung up the phone with the mark, the merchant that had used his son against him and tricked him into stealing something that he'd thought he'd been stealing back for him. He was satisfied though. Konoha gets the blame, twice over as they managed to slip past their security twice, once to steal the merchandise, and then a second time to put it all back.

Not bad for a day's work.

END?

_Challenge 7_: "What if _ was one of the 4400?"

Clarification: I have amended this to just about any character from any universe that you'd care to name. Naruto, Buffy, Animorphs, Harry Potter, just about anything really. 'Naruto' could just as easily have happened in the early 20th Century as the middle of the 21st. Question then becomes, of course; amidst the Kyuubi, chakra, ninja training, and general personality, _WHAT_ could possibly be Naruto's 4400-ability? And how the heck would a Japanese-speaking supernaturally-empowered ninja from the "Hidden Countries" deal with living in Seattle, WA in the year 2004? I leave that up to you. Likewise with Harry Potter, where a 17 or 18 year old wizard from England has to deal with the same, and what would his 4400 ability be?

_NTAC Personnel Files, Code Name: "4400 – Returnees"_

_Returnee # 4001_

_Name:_ Harry James Potter

_Abducted: _July 31, 1997

_Origin_: Little Whinging, Surrey, England

_Notes:_ Immediately after being released from Quarantine, Harry Potter returned to England via his own means and was instructed to report in to the Ministry of Intelligence, Division Five (_MI5_). Communications with his handler never occurred, in fact it was reported that he disappeared entirely after leaving Quarantine and no information regarding his whereabouts has been discovered since.

_Harry returned to the Wizarding World to discover it worse than ever before since he disappeared on the day of his birth, mere weeks after the last war ended. Ginny had married Neville, Ron and Hermione broke up and Ron got Lavender Brown pregnant out of wedlock. Ironically, as part of his personal effects he had on him when Returned, was the Elder Wand, the Death Stone Ring, his Invisibility Cloak and his Phoenix Feather wand. Harry's 4400 ability awakened only a few weeks after returning to Hogwarts, intending on passing his NEWTs, in spite of the Castle still needing quite a lot of repair and Hermione teaching there as the new Muggle Studies Professor. He found he could understand the thoughts of and communicate with animals, and not just magical creatures, but all animals. And when he spoke with Centaurs, Merpeople, Trolls, and Goblins, they understood him as though he were speaking their native languages. With this gift, Harry completed his destiny and brought peace to the Wizarding World... by leading a revolt of Magical Creatures against it._

_Returnee # 4002_

_Name: _Rachel Berenson

_Abducted:_ May 5, 2001

_Origin:_ San Diego, CA, USA

_Notes:_ Rachel Berenson was reported Missing In Action in the wake of bombing (See Code Name: Animorph) of San Diego, believed to have been killed by one of the terrorists as they made their escape. When her family was notified, she was picked up by her mother, siblings, and extended family, of note was cousin Jake Berenson, and a number of friends. They all moved back to her home in San Diego, and she resumed her normal life, returning to High School and as many others picking up where she left off.

_Rachel was believed to have been killed by the Yeerk with the Polar Bear Morph as the Blade Ship made it's escape from the Solar System. It was believed that they dumped her body into space, but it was never recovered by the Andalite Scouter Ships that were dispatched. None were more surprised to find her alive than herself and all the Animorphs. She told them about the Ellimist, how she had died, knowing she was dying, and then she was suddenly on the beach with 4399 others. The Yeerk/Human/Andalite War was successfully covered up by most of the governments, leaving the 'alien' part out of it at least, blaming the entire thing on cultist terrorists that used mind-controlling slugs, genetically engineered of course, and had infected multiple heads of state for multiple countries. The Trial for Visser Three in Geneva was closed, and not publicized. Andalites and Humans entered into an alliance, but the majority of Humanity still believe they are alone in the universe. Andalites (in Morph) are part of NTAC as advisors. Rachel still has her morphing powers and can morph all the animals she could before. Her 4400 ability came about when most of the other more famous ones came to public light. She revealed it to her fellow Animorphs first of all, she was telekinetic and there wasn't a whole lot she __couldn't__ do with it. The Ripple Effect for her to have telekinesis became glaringly obvious when the Animorphs received an urgent summons that their friend and fellow Animorph Ax had disappeared on a mission tracking down the rogue Blade Ship. She joined all of them (Cassie and Tobias included) on the _Rachel_, which she wholeheartedly approved in naming, and they took off to rescue Ax. She telekinetically ripped the One and the Blade Ship apart and they did manage to rescue Ax._

_Returnee # 4003_

_Name: _Prudence Halliwell

_Abducted:_ May 17, 2001

_Origin:_ San Francisco, CA, USA

_Notes:_ Prue Halliwell was reported dead by her sisters, (Phoebe Halliwell, Piper Halliwell), and had believed her body to be cremated. When they received the call, they did not come and pick her up. Reports indicate that after being released from Quarantine, Prue spent roughly one month in the Seattle area, before finally going back to San Francisco and meeting with her sisters. (See Code Name: Charmed) All other information regarding the Halliwells has been Classified Top Secret, Code Name Clearance Level.

_Leo could not get to Prue in time, and he pronounced her dead, unable to be revived. When the Police arrived, they took her body to the morgue where the sisters were told that it had been cremated after the autopsy. There was no autopsy, her body disappeared during a shift change and assumptions were made. Darryl found this out _after _Prue Returned with the other 4400. The reason Prue stayed in Seattle was twofold, she was mad at her Sister not coming to see her and believing her to be a demon, and there was one other Returnee that was unexpected; Andy Trudeau. At first neither could believe it as Andy had died, but then again, so had Prue. The main reason though was a demon vampire queen moving into the Seattle area and she and Andy had to take care of it. It took about a month. Prue returned to San Fran with Andy, both of their 4400 abilities active, not to mention her magical ones, which had advanced as though she hadn't been gone at all. Her powers now included (magically) telekinesis, astral projection, and a development of her "Power To Move" she can now create portals, at first short range and then as she gains experience wherever she can imagine. Her 4400 ability was a real surprise and there was nothing magical about it. Just the opposite in fact, her 4400 ability was that she was immune to all magical attacks or spells or effects that could be cast on her. When she returned, Piper was pregnant with Chris and the sisters were planning on sending Future-Chris, back to the future to insure that Wyatt had been kept safe from turning Evil. Rather than going through with the spell Gideon provided, Prue showed up and a few seconds later an older Prue along with an adult Wyatt, and older versions of Leo and Piper came out of a portal, one of Prue's portals. Apparently, anywhere she imagines will include anywhere in time too. Gideon loses it, as the Dark World does not have a counterpart to Prue showing up, and so the Dark Leo and Dark Chris still show up after the Future Halliwells leave. Chaos ensues, Prue tracks Gideon down, Barbas' power of fear not affecting her at all thanks to her 4400 ability, saves Wyatt and the world never goes out of whack. She moves back into the manor, refurnishing the basement to it's own apartment plus photography studio and suddenly the Power of Three is the Power of Four._

_Returnee # 4004_

_Name:_ Andy Trudeau

_Abducted:_ May 26, 1999

_Origin:_ San Francisco, CA, USA

_Notes_: Andy Trudeau vanished in the midst of an IA investigation, which was dropped when the lead investigator disappeared himself a day after Trudeau went missing. Trudeau's partner on the SFPD force was implicated but never charged after the investigation was dropped. Trudeau spent about a month in the Seattle area after being released from Quarantine, spending a great deal of time with fellow Returnee Prue Halliwell. They both then returned to San Francisco together.

_Andy's body disappeared during the "time skip" caused by the sisters' spell to break out of Tempus's trap. The demon IA investigator disappeared a minute after midnight the day after. Andy and Prue found each other on the beach and Andy was there for her during Quarantine when her sisters didn't come and see her and wasn't there to pick them up either. Because of his own powers kicking in, however, they discovered the vampire queen moving into the area, seeing as Andy managed to save the life of a couple of teenagers from a vamp attack in the park one night. His 4400 ability can be summed up with two words; Super Human. While he's not the Incredible Hulk or Superman, his strength, speed, agility, hand-eye coordination, even his base intelligence are several magnitudes above the highest on record without some other boost. Later, when they had the opportunity to do so, in checking the Book of Shadows, the sisters found reference to a magical being called the Slayer, given the power to defeat vampires and demons and the forces of darkness. From the general description of the power the Slayer has, it matched near perfectly with what Andy could do. With the exception that the Slayer was always female of course. Between Prue's increased magical powers and her new immunity to magic and Andy's own 4400 power, it took them about a month to track down the vampire's layer and destroy the queen. After that, they headed back to San Francisco. Andy reapplied to the Police Force and passed all his equivalency exams and was reinstated as an active homicide detective. After Prue takes care of Barbas and Gideon's plans, Evil Chris and Leo never make a mess of things, Chris never gets arrested and Inspector Sheridan doesn't bother getting in the way when their Captain teams Trudeau and Morris back together again. And then Trudeau shows off his new 4400 ability in taking down a Yakuza gang that would have killed the both of them and some hostages. Morris considers asking for some super powers for himself, but as tensions mount regarding 4400s, he does the smart thing and remains the normal guy side kick to the super cop._

_Returnee # 4005_

_Name: _Jesse McNally

_Abducted:_ October 3, 1997

_Origin:_ Sunnydale, CA, USA

_Notes:_ Jesse McNally was a 16 year old Sophomore at Sunnydale High, and disappeared without a trace shortly into the school year. No other information was made available by local authorities. Due to the Sunnydale Sinkhole Incident, all other records were irretrievable. Both parents confirmed deceased. Jesse asked to contact one Alexander L. Harris, who did arrive to pick him up from Quarantine, but initially was out of the country. Records show Alexander Harris had been returning from Libya, Africa by way of London, England. He then took Jesse straight, via private jet, to Cleveland, OH. All attempts to further contact Jesse or Alexander were prevented due to Initiative Protocols.

_Jesse disappeared from the graveyard, right out of Darla's grasp. Xander and Buffy, who did go looking for him the next day, both thought that he had been killed and his body destroyed in some way. No other events from BtVS canon were changed. Jesse's 4400 ability is identical to Eric Balfour's Trilsetum powers from the show "_No Ordinary Family"_, which include Wolverine/Sabertooth level animal senses and instincts, as well as extendable black claws that come out of his knuckles like a cat's claws. He joins the Scooby Gang and helps defend the world in Season 8 events. He's also the one that starts dating and falls in love with Dawn, while his influence changes Buffy's final decision about the World she and Angel create and how the "final battle" over the Heart finally ends up going. As such, Buffy keeps her own super powers and stays with Angel in the New Realm while Xander becomes the new Boss of everything Slayer, and they actually manage to maintain the status quo of humans being ignorant of demons, and demons not destroying or ruling the world._

_Returnee # 4006_

_Name:_ Alex Whitman

_Abducted:_ April 21, 2001

_Origin: _Roswell, NM, USA

_Notes:_ Alex Whitman was reported missing by his two best friends in school to the Sheriff of Roswell, Jim Valenti. They were later informed by the Sheriff that there had been a car accident and a body with dental records matching Alex Whitman was at the time confirmed to have been Alex and he was declared dead a few days later. His friend Elizabeth Parker refused to believe that he was truly dead. She and five others disappeared a year later, during their High School Graduation. The search for their whereabouts is still ongoing. Shortly after being released from Quarantine, Alex Whitman dropped off the grid.

_Alex didn't die, and he didn't complete the translation entirely, so when he disappeared, Tess feared that he had finally broken her control over him and was hiding in the shadows. She constructed an extremely elaborate mindwarp that made everyone of the group, and all the Authorities that Alex was dead, thereby if he ever showed up again, nobody would trust him over her. When Alex returned, it took about a month, but his 4400 ability was actually near identical to Liz's alien-given powers. He does not have any specialties, but he's still very good with computers and as part of his powers, which the aliens and Liz and Kyle can also do, he can mentally interface and remote access any networked machine. Liz and the aliens are still on the run, though Jesse has joined them to be with his wife, and Kyle returned to Roswell after the events of the final book. Thanks to the publicity the 4400 were receiving, they found out that Alex was one of them and Liz, Maria, Max and Micheal went and picked Alex up from Seattle and got out of town fast. After that, they played catch up for a while, Max and Isabel tried to help Alex remember where he'd been abducted to, but also confirmed it wasn't aliens, and all the humans learned how to better control their powers, except for Jesse. They're still on the run._

_Returnee # 4007_

_Name:_ Edward Elric

_Abducted:_ June 5, 1924

_Origin:_ Munich, Germany

_Notes:_ Edward Elric was a German citizen. No birth records are on file. He disappeared shortly before the Nazis came to power. He was a noted scientist, often participating at a number of country fairs, building and demonstrating various types of machinery. His right arm and left leg have been amputated and replaced with prosthetic limbs. It is surmised that they had been wooden at the time, but when he Returned with the others, both limbs were constructed with technology that is far too advanced for 1920s Europe, and upon analysis may even be more advanced than any prosthetics on the market today. Ed was picked up by his descendant, a German immigrant named Alphonse Elric.

_Complicated; Ed and Al made a mistake when they were children, it trapped Al's soul in a suit of armor, stole Ed's arm and leg, and they joined their world's military as Alchemists in hopes of balancing the consequences of their actions and restoring what they lost with the Philosopher's Stone. In their search for the Stone, enemies and allies and innocents died, and then Ed stepped through the Gateway to restore his brother to life. Al lost his memories of everything that happened in between losing his body and regaining it, and then spent the next few years searching for his lost brother as a State Alchemist. Ed arrived and stayed in 1920's Germany, arriving at the tail end of the First World War. Until the Nazi's started succeeding in the Alchemy experiments and reopened the Gateway. A battle ensued. Ed and Al were reunited, Al regained his memories, and they both stayed on this side of the Gateway, both whole, well except for Ed, but he was fine with that as he'd finally started to grow taller. A year after that, Ed vanished. Al, in his restarted search for his brother, recreated the Philosopher's Stone, but instead of body-snatching, he resumed his role as a soul trapped in a suit of armor. Except the suit of armor was extremely advanced and had an outer layer that was much like human skin. Alchemy is normally not possible on this side of the Gateway, but because Al still had a shard of the original Philosopher's stone, and understanding how one was actually made, he was able to recreate a new one using Nazi scientists as fodder, making them believe they would be the ones to wield the power, rather than empowering it themselves. Ed's 4400 ability is the return and full consequence-free use of his old powers (clapping and them enacting alchemical changes). It is actually the power to transmute directly with his thoughts, and he can change molecular structures directly if he ever manages to focus his powers in such a way, and has nothing to do with the power of Alchemy in the other world, but it's how Ed interprets it. He even manages to give Al his normal body back thanks to his Alchemy-like ability._

_Returnee # 4008_

_Name: _Roronoro Zorro

_Abducted: _Unknown

_Origin:_ Unknown

_Notes:_ Zorro refuses to identify anything about himself. He speaks Japanese, English, Spanish, German, Chinese, and several dialects of all. The first thing he did after leaving Quarantine was buy three katana swords and then left on a ship. No sign of him has been seen or heard from since.

_Zorro is the same Pirate Hunter/Strawhat Pirate from One Piece. He disappeared shortly into the Age of Blackbeard, as did all the Strawhat Pirates. His 4400 ability is quite simply that he can find whatever he's looking for, like a map appearing in his head, or a compass so long as his thoughts are clear on what it is he's looking for. The three swords he bought are actually his swords, the Cursed ones that he'd owned centuries ago. He left on a boat for the Grand Line, intent on finding out what happened to his friends, fully accepting that he was in the future and would never see them again. He doesn't question his 4400 ability, is just grateful that he can still swim. He finds Luffy's (and all the others) descendants on some Caribbean islands and somehow winds up become a Pirate Hunter all over again, this time with the descendants of his nakama, who were pirates back in the day. But then again modern Piracy isn't what it used to be, and so he was happy. Everyone's descendants look exactly like them, but some of the names are mixed up. Also, powers are genetic._

_Returnee # 4009_

_Name: _Naruto Uzumaki

_Abducted: _Unknown

_Origin:_ Konoha of Hi no Kuni (Given by Returnee, Unverified)

_Notes:_ It has been suspected on multiple occasions that Naruto managed to break Quarantine and left the premises and returned several times. Nothing was ever proven. After being released from Quarantine, Naruto asked to be taken back to his home, pointed on a map, tickets were issued, and he left on a plane. He never reported in to the local government, and was reported to have just walked right out of the airport and into the jungles of Southeast Asia. He has not been seen since.

_Naruto disappeared during the Final Battle, but after all the Big Bads, and Sasuke in particular, had been taken down. Rather than die due to his injuries, he vanished beneath Sakura's healing hands and then reappeared a week later, North of Seattle, Washington. It took him a number of months to get back, but he did. His 4400 ability was twofold, which is rare. But there is precedent with Shawn Taylor, who is able to both heal and drain the life out of other living creature. Naruto can now make himself completely invincible to all forces, and he can make himself intangible as Toby/Madara/? could. By invincible, that means that he can use the Kyuubi's chakra now without it damaging him in the slightest. Likewise, he cannot be harmed by external forces while in that state. It's even suspected that he's immune to entropy while 'invincible'. While intangible, however, he's not able to move more than a few feet from the point in space at which he becomes intangible. His chakra abilities are not adversely affected by his 4400 ability at all. Furthermore, Hinata has the unique mutation that ensures their children will also have 4400 abilities, thereby in the eyes of Konoha making it a bloodline limit. When Naruto returns to Konoha, there's still a lot of cleanup from the war to take care of, and the Alliance stays in place even after the initial threat has passed. Naruto is just happy to be home._

_Challenge 8_: "What if Naruto somehow met Xena: Warrior Princess? What would happen?"

Xena and Gabrielle were walking along the road, through the forests of the Land of Fire. That was what the locals called it anyway. The outside world knew it better as One of the Southern Kingdoms of Chin. They were actually on their way back to Greece from the... situation involving Ming Tien, and were heading towards a port that Xena knew could get them back sooner than taking the Silk Road.

There was a heavy silence in the air. Xena was nervous, not that she showed it, about the deception she'd put on for Gabrielle, and Gabrielle was nervous about the deal she had made with Ares that had gotten her to Chin ahead of Xena. They also had nothing to talk about that wouldn't involve accusations and shouting and they both knew that and so the silence.

Until something tickled at the edge of Xena's senses. She stopped and listened carefully.

"Xena?" Gabrielle whispered, adjusting her staff in case they were about to be attacked.

"Shh!" she hissed, holding her hand up as her eyes scanned the trees.

Three figures suddenly appeared before them in the middle of the road. They were cloaked so neither of the warrior women could see their bodies or what weapons they carried. Painted animal masks covered their faces, so the only distinguishing features that could be seen was their hair. The one in the middle with a Dog mask had a shock of silver hair. The one on the right in a Cat mask had long purple hair done up in a long ponytail. The one on the left in a Bear mask had short cropped brown hair.

"State your business here," 'Dog' demanded. He sounded like he was a teenager, but Xena kept her guard up.

"Just passing through to the coast, the port city of _Enkiaishi_," Xena replied. "Why?"

The three masked people looked at one another briefly and then Dog answered, "You're not from around here, are you? No, I can see that you are not. We are ANBU of Konoha. We merely wanted to ascertain your intentions."

"Konoha?" Gabrielle whispered, not recognizing the name.

"It means 'Leaf'," Xena replied, not bothering to lower her voice, "Probably the name of their village. ANBU is obviously an honorary title for one of the village's guards. And judging from the way you three just appeared like that, I would wager that most of those guards are probably ninja."

"Ninja?" Gabrielle felt like she was a kid all over again, asking questions about everything.

"Assassins basically," Xena answered with a derisive sneer. She'd had bad experiences with ninja in the past.

"Soldiers would be another definition," 'Bear' snapped back. He sounded like a tight ass.

"Enough," Dog stopped things before it could escalate into anything... unfortunate.

"Thank you for your time, we will leave you in peace to proceed on your way," he then made a sharp motion with his hand, and like that all three of them vanished.

Xena smirked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

"Gabrielle, go on ahead and make camp by the river at the next crossing. I'll meet you there later," she told her companion.

"And what are you going to be doing in the mean time?" Gabrielle asked in reply, not entirely trusting Xena's motivations given recent events.

"Just satisfying my curiosity," she smirked and then took a running leap into the trees, holding back her warcry this time.

Gabrielle sighed and rolled her eyes as she continued on her way to the river.

Once she reached the river, she came across a red haired young woman, a very pregnant young woman at that. She was apparently washing clothes, or something, although Gabrielle didn't see any baskets, just swatches of wet cloth all over the area.

"Hello," Gabrielle called, not wanting to startle the mother-to-be.

Kushina started and almost threw a kunai chain at the civilian. She was starting to lose her edge. She really hoped her son came soon, because being pregnant _sucked_!

"Oh! Hello there," Kushina waved and quickly hid all her weapons. Without her hitai-ate on, she couldn't be identified as a ninja of Konoha and given her current condition, it would be better for all involved if she was thought of as a helpless civilian than who she truly was. "Didn't see you there."

"Do you need some help?" Gabrielle asked.

Kushina grinned and shook her head. "It's no problem, I got it. Besides, you look like you're headed somewhere."

"I'm headed here for the moment," Gabrielle smiled. "My friend is... satisfying her curiosity, so I've been told to make camp by the river. Know a good spot?"

Kushina shrugged. "Why not go to the nearby village? There's an Inn or two there where you can spend the night if that is your goal. More secure for one, more comfort for another."

"You mean that Konoha village? We were just stopped by some kind of guards from there. Abu, or something like that. I don't think they'll let us in after that."

"I think you mean ANBU," Kushina clarified. "The elite of the ninja. You're not from around here, are you?"

"I'm Gabrielle, and no, I'm actually from a village called Potodea, in Greece," Gabrielle answered.

"I am Uzumaki Kushina. You may call me Kushina," the redhead grinned up at the blond.

"How far along are you?" Gabrielle asked, and then quickly backpedaled, "If you don't mind me asking that is?"

Kushina smiled and shook her head, "Hopefully any day now. So tell me Gabrielle, what brings you to this part of the world? Tell me your story, please."

_One thing lead to another, Xena wasn't as stealthy as she thought, but she was strong enough, only those of Kage-Rank could actually match her when she was caught. The Fourth managed to corner her and then offered to show her a few things, right as Gabrielle and Kushina walked onto the scene. Xena stayed around and learned about chakra and a few other ninja skills, no actual jutsu, to add to her repetoire, while Gabrielle learned new healing techniques from Rin (Minato's Medic-nin student), again no jutsu, just new knowledge and using chakra to enhance natural healing._

_And then Kushina went into labor..._

"Keep that thing at bay, Minato!" Xena screamed as she assisted in Kushina's giving birth to a healthy son. Gabrielle was assisting and the medic-nin scripted for this mission were staring in awe as the warrior woman did things to Kushina's body to ease the pregnancy that they'd never imagined without being a chakra master, or Tsunade of the Sannin.

Suddenly, Xena's instincts warned her of danger and she wiped one hand clean and lashed out with her chakram.

"Ohooh, you detected me already?" a masked man laughed darkly from the shadows, having deflected Xena's ranged weapon with ease. With the same ease, she caught it and reholstered it on her belt, all without taking her other hand off of young Naruto.

"Minato, you really need to seal that bastard back up," Xena growled. "Gabrielle!"

Instantly, her friend was there with a blanket as Naruto was welcomed into the world. "Keep him safe," Xena whispered and let Gabrielle finish cleaning Kushina up. She grabbed her sword and charged straight for the intruder.

"Give me the Kyuubi, or else," he growled and then vanished. The surprising thing was that Xena vanished at the same moment.

"You're fast," the masked man observed, Xena standing between him and the new family. "Impressive."

"You haven't seen nothing yet," Xena growled and then let out her warcry and charged the intruder faster than ever. He didn't bother dodging, and while he could have it would have been closer than he would have liked. Xena made to run him through and almost wasn't surprised when her sword went right through him. She backflipped away from him and grabbed one of the nearby torches and took a gulp of some rubbing alchohol they had on hand. She spat a surprisingly large fireball at the masked man, and this time he did dodge, leaping up and aiming to land right on top of Gabrielle and Naruto.

"Minato!" Xena called, knowing she wouldn't make it in time.

"Damnit!" the Fourth Hokage made his choice, and didn't regret it for a moment for the rest of his life. He vanished in a flash and reappeared in front of Gabrielle and threw a three-pronged kunai at the intruder. It phased through him of course, but it also got him to back off rather than continue going after Naruto and Gabrielle.

"Aagggaaahhh!" Kushina cried out suddenly.

The masked man made a series of handseals and then released an ungodly amount of chakra.

The Kyuubi was released.

_Some violence, some heartfelt pleas, Xena very nearly taking Minato's place as the sacrifice, and then finally..._

"The scrolls... I wanted... my son to have..." Minato handed Xena the key to his and Kushina's apartment, with a very special tag attachment, "And... the Key to the Seal lies with the Toads of Mount Moyukbo... I put... some of my chakra and as much of Kushina's into the seal... to repair it... and to help Naruto one day control it..."

"I understand," Xena nodded, accepting the key. "I'll make sure that Sarutobi gets this..."

"No!" Minato said with sudden energy and anger that he didn't have. "I... remember... Kushina, younger... hated, resented, persecuted..."

"Because of the Kyuubi," Xena nodded, understanding.

"You..."

"What?" Xena's blue eyes snapped to meet the dying man's, "Minato, what? You know what my life is like! Why...? You can't mean..."

Sarutobi and three squads of ANBU arrived around them and watched as Minato gave his dying will to a foreign warrior.

"I am... still Hokage... for the next minute or so anyway..." he said weakly. "My last... act... as Hokage... is to grant... and approve... the adoption of my son... Naruto... to Xena... Tenkabatsu Jounin of Konoha... Protect him... Train him... Prepare him... And get him the hell out of this village that will hate him for what the Fox did..." he was whispering now, the last of his energy going to the Shinigami. "...let...him...be...happy . . ."

And then Minato died.

Xena closed his eyes and lay him next to his wife. Gabrielle was still holding on to Naruto for the time being.

"I have some things to collect," Xena said to Sarutobi, "and I'll stick around for about a week, helping to clean things up and gather supplies. And then we're leaving."

"I... of course..." said the once-retired Hokage, but no longer.

"And I'm taking Naruto with us," she stated, her weapons already in hand.

The Third Hokage frowned and stated in return, "I cannot allow that."

Xena merely stared at Minato's predecessor over the dead bodies of her friends and simply said, "There's been enough bloodshed for one night... Hokage. Don't add to it." She then turned to face the rest of the ANBU gathered around them, "You all heard it, as clear as I did. Minato's dying will was that I and Gabrielle raise his son... and to take him away from the place where he will be persecuted for all his years growing up. If he ever returns, that will be his choice. Not yours or anyone elses. And if you try and stop me, I'll show you a _real_ demon!"

Obviously, they backed down, and a week later, Xena and Gabrielle finally completed their journey to the coast and getting on a boat back to Greece. Or as close as they could manage at any rate.

_With the presence of a baby, who was the container for the Kyuubi, strongest of the Biju, Xena's adventures took a slightly different turn from normal. Joxer joined the two of them as a permanent babysitter, and Ares and other gods often tried to kidnap the baby to "raise him right" as it were. Add about a year of time between each subesequent season so that by time Eve is born, Naruto is four or five years old and beginning to learn how to mix chakra. Another change is that Xena learns how to use her chakra and as such manages to boost her fighting skill and keep some of her 'special powers' even after they would have normally been taken away. Gabrielle became an even better healer, on par with anything Xena could do, and even picked up more skill than her friend by the time Eve was born._

_After Eve was born, things remained much the same, except that it was a little boy and a baby going with the two warrior women as they were hunted by the gods. From Eve's birth to the events of episode "Looking Death In The Eye", roughly 15 months passed, making Naruto closer to six years old, and Eve just over a year old, teething and starting to walk. During which time they returned to Konoha and came up with the plan that lead to LDITE. Xena became the Fifth Hokage as everyone in the village respected her, and the Third really wanted to retire. Xena reformed ROOT and put it under Gabrielle's purview instead of Danzo's, and likewise made sure to keep an eye on the Uchiha and all the other clans. Eve and Naruto grew up in the village and joined the Academy._

_Years later, when Naruto graduated, he was the Hokage's son and had several key moves not seen in "Naruto" canon. He was teamed up with Hinata and Sasuke, as the Rookie of the Year was one of the other boys in class, surprisingly. Jiraiya showed up during his first Chuunin Exams and taught him Summoning and when Akatsuki showed up, the Rasengan. When Tsunade showed up, she apprenticed Eve straight out of the Academy, and completed Gabrielle's education. Xena did not die during the Chuunin Exams, in fact she pushed Orochimaru into retreating entirely, and Naruto was (barely) good enough to keep Sasuke from being marked. Akatsuki moved at the same times as in canon, Itachi is not a part of Akatsuki. Tsunade became the Sixth Hokage, and Naruto went on a "training journey" with Xena and Jiraiya together, while Eve and Gabrielle stayed in Konoha. Three years after that, Naruto returned and was promptly made Chuunin alongside his classmates, and Xena announced that it was time they returned home. Eve, now trained enough to be able to defend herself, was introduced to Eli's followers and accepted her calling. Xena received the power to Kill gods about ten years earlier than canon, Eve never went evil, and Xena saved Gabrielle's family from being attacked by slavers. Ares showed up and tried to corrupt Naruto and Eve at various points, and then he teamed up with the Real Boss behind Akatsuki and started a World War, several centuries before such a thing should have been possible. That it was everybody in the world against Akatsuki was just a coincidence._

_All the gods but Ares and Aphrodite died, killed by Xena or themselves or each other, and Xena and Gabrille called Konoha their second home and often spent time going back and forth between the East and the West, becoming legendary heroes. Xena still died the same way, she was just about thirty years older, physically speaking. The whole world mourned when Xena's ashes were brought home to Konoha, as Amphipolis was still abandoned and cursed by the devil._

_Naruto was the Ninth Hokage, after the war was long over with. Eve joined the Movement of Love and kept the story of Eli alive and was the one to "teach" the "Mother of Peace", Xena's next reincarnation, while the warrior companion was a friend of Naruto, who made him vow to protect the Mother of Peace no matter what._

END

_Challenge 9_: "What if Buffy ran away to a different city, other than LA? Who would she meet, what could happen to her?"

"Metropolis"

_Summary: Buffy works in the diner in Suicide Slums, and even has the occasional Superman sighting. Then, one night a bunch of vampires come in and one thing leads to another, ending with Buffy and Supergirl living together, and the "Vampire Slayer" working alongside Superman to combat supernatural threats._

"Gotham City"

_Summary: Buffy stays a bit too long in Gotham, and when the Joker comes to call, she takes exception. She meets the Batman and figures him out after their third encounter, beating him in hand-to-hand each and every time. Buffy Summers is then invited to Wayne Manor and her mother invited to move to Gotham City after they reconcile. Nightstalker returns to Sunnydale alongside Nightwing and take it to the Mayor and all the demons._

"Dakota City"

_Summary: Buffy was staying at the Youth Shelter run by the Hawkins, but old habits die hard and when she hears about a "gang war" going off not too far away, she heads straight for it, just in time to get a lungful of the Big Bang gas. Her Slayer powers get enhanced to Superman levels of power and Flash levels of speed and agility, and on top of that, she has psychic powers that lets her identify demons and vampires easier than ever. She also gets a vision of what will happen if she doesn't go back home and returns to Sunnydale, now a Super Slayer._

"Roswell"

_Summary: Buffy, saying that she's 18 already on her application, starts working at the Crashdown Cafe. She stops the shooter at the door with a few simple moves that has everybody calling her Kung Fu Girl for the rest of her time, and for the rest of the time she's there, notices a lot of behavior similar to what she herself used to do, but from Liz, Maria, Max and Michael. When she shapeshifter comes to town, Buffy quickly sniffs out who it really is and takes him down hard, right in front of the aliens' eyes. Eventually, stories are swapped and trust is earned._

"San Francisco"

_Summary: Phoebe has a premonition and the Charmed Ones meet the Slayer and help her get over her issues, while she helps them in vanquishing demons._

_Challenge 10_: "What if the Dragonballs existed in the Naruto-verse?"

Clarification: What I'm specifically asking is what if it were **JUST** the Dragonballs themselves, the 7 star-orbs that grant one or however many perfect wishes. NOT the DB, DBZ, or DBGT characters, **JUST** the Dragonballs and _/ONLY/_ the Dragonballs. There have been plenty of DBZ/Naruto crossovers already, but I've not yet seen someone write a story where the Ninja Nations try and get their hands on the 7 Dragonballs for the wish, rather than fighting aliens and monsters and learning ki and all that. Try it out, please, and let me know if anybody tries it!

"Hey Ji-ji!" a young Naruto cried, running into the Hokage's office, "What's this?" He was holding an orange sphere that looked like glass but was infinitely more durable. At it's center were four red stars.

"Naruto? Where did you find this?" the Third Hokage asked, immensely surprised to see the 4 Star Dragonball once again after all these years.

"Found it!" the blond boy grinned widely up at the old man. "What is it?"

Just as the Hokage was getting ready to tell his young friend a story about the Fourth and his Special Lady, the Dragonball lit up in Naruto's hand and flashed brightly before fading back to normal. A few moments later, it lit up again. Sarutobi's eyes went wide and he raised the alarm.

"ANBU! Summon all the Jounin of the Village _at once_! The Dragonballs are active once more! We must find them before the other Villages do!" the Hokage ordered, ignoring the fact that Naruto still held the artifact that, once brought together with the other six, could grant a Perfect Wish.

End? Or the Beginning?

_Challenge 11_: "What if Lily wasn't an 'Evans' but a 'Halliwell'?"

"LEO!" Prue Halliwell shouted for her and her sisters' whitelighter, holding the infant son of their, apparently now dead, Aunt Petunia. The letter was signed by some pompous windbag name Dumbledore. It identified the baby as their cousin Harry and asked that he be accepted into their home until he had to go to school at some place named after a pig's skin condition. "_LEO_!"


	56. Aphrodisiac Chapter 1 NC17

Title: Aphrodisiac

Author: The Evil Guy

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon came up with all the characters of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". Aphrodite the goddess is pure myth, but Renaissance and Rob Tapert created the "image" portrayed by actress Alexandra Tyding, which is the only crossover for this fic.

Warning: This fic is rated NC-17, and I'm half tempted to make that 18. The title alone should tell you that this is ENTIRELY smut. Xander-smut, but still all the same, total porn fic. I don't care if you have your own porn collection and a weekly subscription to Penthouse, Playboy, AND Hustler, if you're 16 or younger, YOU DO NOT, CANNOT READ THIS FANFIC! I refuse to contribute to the delinquency for minors, and I am *going* to ask A. Grandt if it is possible to put a Parental Lock, of sorts, on all the NC-17 stories for the XanderZone Archive. Most especially for THIS one!

Background: Set in Season 6 before the Geeks actually became a problem. Slight revision; Joyce Summers did not die of an aneurysm, instead the surgery was a complete success and she is still alive and in the Scoobies lives. Just basically take out all the money-troubles, and put Joyce right there beside Willow in resurrecting Buffy. Yes, Buffy died stopping Glory, yes she was revived, in her coffin, underground, and yes, she's depressed because she *thinks* she was ripped out of Heaven. Personally, I'm sticking with 3D Master's version of that and saying that she was stuck in some kind of 'pleasure dimension' by an insane and evil goddess, maybe Jasmine, and eventually she will get over it, and this is also before she starts kissing and fucking Spike. Xander and Anya are engaged, Willow and Tara are still together, Willow's getting a little careless but there hasn't been a fight yet. Oh, and Buffy still needs a job despite there not being a financial crisis. I am running with the assumption that when Dawn showed up in Season 5, she was 16 years old and her birthday is during the Summer, so by now she is 17 years old. Ironically, the same age her sister lost her virginity to a 200-year-old vampire. Also, one last addendum; this is now more of a "Xander gets a harem" fic, kinda like in B&S, just without the jokes. And I like Buffy.

Summary: Another 'Xander gets a power' fic. Minor crossover with the Herc/Xena verse, but ONLY in the prologue. Xander's Mother, capital M, finally reveals herself to him and gives him the gifts that are his birthright. Gifts of the gods. NC-17

Part 1: "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered Revisited!"

Xander drove Anya to work much later that morning, making very sure to completely satisfy her before even stepping into the shower where he continued to make sure that he could maybe have the night off. That he now sported a 12-inch, aka one foot monster of a dick certainly helped matters along, and now as they drove, Anya was just giving him that love-filled doe-eyed expression she got whenever he really had satisfied her.

Luckily Xander didn't have to go to work himself, not until much later that afternoon, and even then it was just for a real quick job on the site because the crew was still waiting for a shipment of supplies to come in from the home office in L.A.

Xander's Ford pulled up behind the Magic Box, in the 'Employee parking' zone, and he and Anya quickly walked around to the front. Xander did note that Giles' new car was right out front and so was Willow's car, indicating that just about everybody was there. Xander hesitated, and almost just walked off back home right then and there, until he remembered that it was a Tuesday and Dawn was most definitely in school. With a sigh of relief he followed his fiancé through the door.

The bell finished ringing, probably toning his death sentence he mused, and all Xander could see was Giles behind the register and Anya walked up to take his place. So far there was not a single customer, especially of the female variety, here yet. What really had him concerned though was where Buffy, Tara, and Willow might be.

"Anya!" Giles exclaimed as soon as he saw she was here, "Where have you been? You're almost an hour late!"

"Oh chill out Giles," Anya said calmly as she saddled up to the register, "You like opening the store with the peace and quiet. And especially without me to disturb you by counting my, I mean the money."

Giles blushed a little, but just let the matter drop, in favor of another one.

"You seem to be in a rather good mood this morning," he observed.

Anya practically glowed, "Xander gave me the absolute best orgasms last night and this morning. I think his penis has actually grown too."

Xander, at this point, would have hastily moved to correct her or even started stammering an apology for her vulgar words, even if they hadn't been meant as such. Normally, that is exactly what he would have done. Today, after last night and the knowledge of his 'gifts' in mind, he just groaned in annoyance and rolled his eyes while trying to hide his face in his hand.

Giles also rolled his eyes, now regretting that he had asked. "Oh yes, of course, how silly of me," he mumbled as he went around the counter to finish inventory.

"Hey G-man," Xander greeted the ex-Watcher.

"Xander," Giles nodded in greeting, too glad to be away from Anya to say anything about his 'infernal nickname'.

"Uh, where are the girls?" Xander hesitantly asked.

"Oh, well," Giles stopped and looked around, "I, uh, I've uh, apparently lost track of them. They . . ."

"Giles? Have you got something burning out here?" Buffy's voice came from the back.

Xander gulped, now beginning to sweat a little.

Buffy, immediately followed by both Tara and Willow, the Slayer herself decked out in a blue sports bra and black lycra training shorts, the witches wearing long, figure-hugging dresses with floral designs, came from the back, where Giles kept the training room.

"Uh, sorry, no, why do you ask?" Giles answered Buffy's question.

Xander was really sweating now, and gulped again.

"Oh, well we smelled something out here and," Buffy began.

"And Tara and I thought it smelled like some kind of potion," Willow finished for her.

"Oh, well, sorry to disappoint. And I don't smell anything."

Xander almost raised his hand and confessed right there if what happened next hadn't happened.

"Oh well, our mistake. Come on girls, lets get back to work." Buffy lead them back into the training room.

Xander stared after them, stunned. Then he let a sigh of relief escape his lips. Until…

"Hey Xander, why don't you help us out too?" Buffy suggested at the last second.

"Yeah," Willow agreed with a bright smile.

Tara actually smiled at him and nodded her own agreement, "We would like it if you joined us Xander."

Xander looked more like a deer caught in hi-beams than he did his normal self, but the women didn't seem to notice or realize that as they waited patiently, a little too patiently he thought, for his answer. Finally, taking a deep shuddering breath, and gulping one more time, he nodded and forced a goofy smile onto his face, "Sure. Anything for my girls."

He didn't expect the reaction that he got for his answer, as each of the ladies smiled at him and Buffy and Willow even blushed a little. Quietly all four of them wandered into the back. Giles was too caught up in inventory, and trying very hard not to think of his morning conversation with Anya, to notice anything strange about the occurrence.

In the back, Xander quickly caught on to what the three of them had been doing. Willow and Tara were practicing and exercising their magical skills while helping Buffy to train. The witches would levitate, or sometimes even teleport in the training equipment Buffy used and then turn it into sort of an obstacle course for the Slayer. The pads that Giles wore when sparring with Buffy floated around in concentric circles, like moving targets, and when hit with sufficient force by the Slayer, the target would fall to the floor, only to get right back up and levitating thirty seconds later.

Willow would also suddenly pop in some of the 'training horses' for Buffy to jump and leap over while trying to hit all of the targets within thirty seconds of each other, and Tara would add to it by popping up 'traps' around the mat. Things like jump ropes and weights and barbells would suddenly jump up from the floor with no warning to trip the Slayer up, forcing her to react and think faster than normal.

Xander, initially, just sat at the sidelines watching the Slayer move, sweating with the exertion the witches were putting her through. After about ten minutes though, he thought of a way to help Buffy out.

Right now she was just reacting, responding to each threat and going after what she needed when it came into her range. And that was all and good, in a melee fight, but in order to complete the objective, which was hit all of the targets to the floor within thirty seconds, she could never finish it. In order to do that, she needed a plan, or at least some kind of strategy to help her out.

"Hey Buff," he called, and then said to the witches, "Pause it for a minute, can you?" They nodded, wondering what he was planning as they lowered the levitating items.

Buffy stopped in the middle of the training mats and stared at Xander. She was breathing heavily and sweat had darkened several spot on her top, but her eyes said she was eager to continue her workout. Which was good, Xander thought. Ever since they had brought her back it had seemed like she had died inside, or something got left behind. Right now, Xander couldn't tell the difference from this Buffy to the one he had first met in High School.

"What's up Xander?" she asked.

"I want to try something," he explained. "How about when Wills and Tare start this thing up again, I'll tell you which target to go after and warn you about any surprises they've got coming. I know that normally in a fight you don't have me there telling you what to hit and all, but at the rate you're going, you're never going to hit them all."

Buffy's faced scrunched up in annoyance, he knew she didn't like being told what to do, and what he suggested, he remembered, sounded too much like that exercise the Watchers had made her go through. But, they did ask him back here to help, even if it was so they could just keep him close and drool in their lust over him, but again it would be worth a shot.

"Eh, what the hell, should be a challenge to see if you can keep up with me," Buffy grinned.

Xander grinned right back and moved to the side opposite the witches, but still off the mat and away from any flying projectiles. "All right, let's try it. Just listen to me Buffy," he said in a loud crisp voice.

Immediately Buffy stood straight and faced Xander, her posture almost military. Smiling to themselves, Willow and Tara levitated the targets again and repositioned several of the obstacles on the mat.

Xander nodded to himself and started looking at the whole 'field' like it was a live-action videogame. And he ruled videogames.

"Now Buffy, jump! Roundhouse kick upper left!" Instantly Buffy complied, hitting the target that had been rotating around her head. Xander quickly moved on to the remaining targets, each of his commands, which Buffy almost instantly obeyed, brought another target down. Good thing there was only ten of them, as Buffy hit the tenth before even a single 'obstacle' had appeared on the mat and just before the first one would have floated back up.

Xander smirked and started clapping while the witches just stared on in disbelief and Buffy herself seemed to snap out of some kind of trance. "Great job Buff. See, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

Buffy stared around her at the fallen targets with an almost stunned look on her face. "Whoa," she mumbled. Then she looked back up at Xander, and unconsciously took a big sniff of the air. He smelled so good.

"Can we . . . try that again? I'd like to see if it was some kind of fluke or something," she asked.

Xander shrugged, "I don't mind, but ask the ladies that are providing you this workout to see if they mind first."

Instantly Buffy turned and asked Willow and Tara, "Can we try that again? If you don't mind I mean?"

Willow shook her head, "No, we don't mind Buffy. We'll try to get the obstacles in there a bit faster too, to make it more challenging."

Buffy nodded and smiled, although it was a tiny half-smile and centered herself on the matt again. The targets lifted up in the air once more, but this time with far more erratic flight paths, and several of the traps scattered about on the mat.

"All right, just like before Buff, just listen to what I say," Xander started to trace the paths of the targets, and also took note of several of the 'traps'. Buffy, as before, suddenly snapped to attention and turned to face Xander.

"Ready, and, lower left hand kick! Roundhouse punch to the right! Back flip!" Xander guided her, and Buffy instantly obeyed each of his commands as she kicked one target down and immediately punched out another one. At the last instant she just dodged one of Tara's jump rope traps with a back flip.

It was much more difficult because the witches were more on the ball with bringing in the obstacles, and Xander had to figure out the paths the targets were taking before directing Buffy to one, but as with videogames, he was thinking just one step ahead of the game. Or Willow and Tara in this case.

Just before the first ones were about to start floating again, Xander managed to combine a jumping flip into a high kick that brought down the last target within the time limit. Xander cheered and Willow and Tara, sweating a little themselves, stood up to also congratulate the Slayer. "Way to go Buff! Give yourself a pat on the back!"

Instantly, Buffy's hand shot over her shoulder and started patting her back. At the weird looks she got, she blushed crimson and slowly lowered her arm, racing her mind to come up with some kind of excuse. "Uh, just, uh, well you did tell me to do everything you said, and I felt like I deserved a pat on the back," Buffy tried to bluster.

Xander smiled, but then his smile faltered as his friend's words worked their way through his brain. She had done _everything_ he . . . said . . . to do . . . Aw shit. In other words, Buffy had _obeyed_ him. And everything that sounded like a command too, now that he thought about it, going over the past few minutes. He had _told_ her to listen to him, and she did and then did everything that he had _commanded_ her to do. Questions, requests, things that weren't a command, she reacted normally to, but . . . the pat on the back . . . oh.

She had still been '_listening'_ to him. But still, he needed to know how far this gift from his mother would go. Was it like hypnotism, where someone only did what they wanted to do unless tricked into thinking it was something else? Or was it really as all-commanding as it seemed. Unfortunately, there was only one way to find out. The good part though, he realized, was that afterwards he could just order them to forget what he had made them do or that he had influenced them in any other way than asking them to do it.

Taking a breath, steeling himself for what he was about to do, Xander set his ground and changed his expression to serious. Just as he was about to speak, of course, Anya walked into the backroom.

"Oh, there you are Xander," she greeted with a loving tone in her voice. It was hard to hear for those that didn't know her, but he could tell. "I was just finishing telling Giles about the wonderful sex we had last night, but he told me to come back here and get Willow and Tara for him, but he made sure to tell me it wasn't at all urgent," she said as she saddled up to him and embraced him for a quick kiss.

Knowing Giles, he had made up that whole needing the witches thing just to get Anya out of his hair for a few minutes. But the G-man's time could not have been worse for the former zeppo.

Catching the looks of disgust on Willow's face, mild embarrassment on Tara's, and apathy from Buffy, Xander told Anya to go do something that he knew she would love doing anyway. "Anya," he breathed, a tone of command in his voice, "Go count money."

She stiffened, or more came to attention all of a sudden and then smiled, as he knew she did when thinking about money, and replied, "I think I'll go count the money again." And she quickly left.

The others now looked at him with confusion in their expressions, because while it wasn't unusual for Xander to tell Anya to go do something else, he was usually more polite and roundabout with it. Xander ignored them for the moment, watching Anya leave, and then walked to the door himself and looked out into the Magic Box.

"Hey G-man," he called.

"Yes, what is it Xander?" Giles said tiredly from the stacks while Anya was back behind the register, happily counting all of the cash therein.

"Don't come back here for a while," he ordered, and then turned back around into the training room.

Behind him, Giles briefly stood a little straighter, blinked, and then shrugged and went back to what he was doing before Xander had interrupted him.

Back in the training room, Xander walked up to the three waiting ladies.

"Xander? What's going on?" Willow asked, concern evident in her features.

"I need the three of you to be quiet and listen to me," Xander replied, a hint of urgency to his voice.

Immediately, all three ladies came to attention before him and made no move to speak or ask him what he was doing. Once he was assured of their attention, and slightly worried that Tara had also come to attention, he worked out what he had planned.

"From now on, whenever I ask you a direct question, you will tell me the complete and total honest truth," Xander ordered, but an afterthought made him quickly add, "But in like everyday stuff you can still lie and keep things private if you really want to, and keep behaving like you would at any other time. Only when I, and me alone at that, ask you a direct question do you tell me the gods-honest truth."

He didn't ask if they understood. Either his new power worked or it didn't.

Now to test it; "Now answer me honestly girls, do you trust me?"

Willow smiled like nothing strange had just happened and answered him truthfully, "Of course I trust you Xander."

Tara meekly nodded, pink tinting her cheeks and answered, "I trust you Xander. With my life even."

"I trust you about as far as I can throw you," Buffy boldly declared.

Willow and Tara turned, shocked at the Slayer, the redhead's mouth opening with no doubt a scathing remark about such an answer, but Xander interrupted her, "Quiet Willow." Her mouth snapped shut and she just kept up the glare at Buffy instead of saying anything.

"You can throw me pretty far Buff," Xander pointed out to the Slayer.

"Yeah, but there are a lot of things that I don't trust anyone but myself with," she answered, brutally honest. Xander frowned. He knew his friend had always been a mite selfish, but he hoped that she trusted him with some things. Her life for prime example, seeing as he had saved hers many times over, and brought her back from the dead twice.

"Like what?" he wanted to know.

"My family, my happiness, what I do with my life, that's my business anyway."

"Is that all that you don't trust me with?"

She only nodded.

Xander nodded back and took a deep breath. "Then how would you feel if I told you to go out and get a job so you could be happy and better support your family? Honestly Buffy," he asked.

She didn't hesitate in answering him, although her face remained entirely apathetic, "I'd tell you to go screw yourself and mind your own damn business. I'd also like to inform you that I do in fact have a job, at the Double Meat Palace and I am supporting my family. Then I'd probably hit you."

"So if I told you to go get a job that actually made you happy, you're telling me that you wouldn't do it and would probably hit me?" he asked.

She just shrugged and nodded, although now the other two ladies were starting to look between the two with confusion and concern. "Absolutely," Buffy verbally answered him.

"Are you sure about that? I mean, there is no doubt anywhere in your mind that if I told you to do that right now, that's the response you would give?" he wanted to be sure.

Now Buffy was getting annoyed and she just nodded her head again and answered, "You asked, I answered, yes Xander that is what I would do. No doubt in my mind."

Xander nodded, took a deep breath and said, "Buffy, go out and find a job that you know you can do and would be successful at and may even enjoy on some level, and then quit your job at the Double Meat Palace. And try to be happy, or at least happier than you have been lately with this major depression shit."

Rather than react as she said she would, and as Xander had been silently hoping she would, she instead stood a little straighter and her eyes shown with thought as she about faced and left through the back door, still in her training outfit, and began to run off, looking for a better job.

Xander sighed, suddenly a little depressed himself. Seemed there really was no limit to his new power. At least not to Slayers. But, he hoped as he turned to face Tara and Willow, that witches had some kind of immunity that Buffy didn't.

Willow's eyes went wide as her super-fast computer brain began to piece together everything that had happened this morning so far, but it was Tara who asked, "Xander . . . what is going on?"

Xander sighed and briefly considered just telling them to be quiet and then forcing them to forget later on, but he couldn't, he _wouldn't_ do that to them. Tara had been abused and violated enough during her life, and Willow . . .

"Something happened to me last night," he answered her. "Come on, let's sit down so I can explain everything."

Of their own choice, seeing as they didn't straighten, which he had begun to figure was the clue when his power was working on someone, they followed him to a bench and sat down on either side of him.

Taking a deep breath and letting out a slow sigh, Xander tried to explain. "The only way I know how to explain this is to tell you about the dream I had last night. In the dream, I met my real mother. Not the woman that is my biological parent and wife to my father, but my _*real*_ mother. She's Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love. In the dream, she explained about how exactly she could be my mother, and how this gave me, I think she called it a portion of godhood. She then gave me a gift. She called it the Gift of Obedience, and that's why Buffy and everybody else is doing whatever I tell them."

"Okaaay," Willow trailed off, looking like she thought her friend was crazy, but knew that he had to be speaking the truth. Too many weird, very unlikely things had already happened, more than enough evidence to convince her.

Tara wasn't having so hard a time with accepting this though. "So whatever you tell someone to do, they do it. No question." It was more a statement and confirmation of what he was saying than a query.

Xander just nodded.

"Prove it," Willow demanded, needing a little bit more evidence. Evidence where she knew it herself instead of trying to figure things out from subtle little clues.

Xander hesitated, and then figured this was like little kids with stories of some grand adventure they had when they were alone, and agreed to 'prove it'. "Tara, stand up," he said.

Instantly, the blonde wiccan got to her feet.

"Walk around to in front of us please, so we both can see you," he requested. Xander knew, because of the phrasing, and the addition of the word please, not to mention the way Tara did not stand at attention anymore, that Tara walked around of her own will.

"Both of you remember me telling you to be honest when I ask a direct question, right?" They both nodded. "Good. Now Tara, you're gay, right?"

"Yes," Tara almost giggled as such a straightforward question.

"Have you always been gay?"

"Ever since I was 14 and kissed a girl at my school. I tried kissing boys after that . . . or rather they tried kissing me, but I decided I didn't like that as much. Although . . ." Tara blushed some as she looked Xander up and down from where she stood.

"That's enough," he hastily halted her. "Have you ever let anybody other than Willow see you naked?"

"Xander!" Willow exclaimed.

Tara blushed furiously. She shook her head and answered, "No. Not even my father or mother except when I was a baby."

"Is there some secret that you have, that you would never tell anyone, maybe not even Willow?" Xander asked, his final test on the honesty command.

Timidly, and looking worried now herself, Tara nodded to the affirmative.

Willow's eyes went wide and she pinched Xander on the thigh with a glare thrown in for good measure. "Ow," he complained, rubbing the spot. At her glare he responded, "Well, you wanted proof, here's proof. Tara, tell us that secret. And jump up and down with your arms on top of your head while you do it."

Tara straightened her posture a little as her hands _flew_ to the top of her head and she started bouncing up and down, which was bouncing a couple of other things as well. "I liked getting beat when I was a teenager by my family. I sometimes even had an orgasm after Robby would finish whipping me and calling me dirty names like slut and bitch and cunt-licker." She kept on bouncing.

Xander stared, stunned. His eyes blinked automatically, all other thought, save one, absent from his head. That thought was '_Whoa.'_

Willow was in much the same condition, until she realized that her girlfriend was still bouncing up and down like a bimbo cheerleader. She slapped Xander on the thigh again and glared, "Xander!" Then she gestured at Tara.

"Oh, right. Sorry. Tara, stop bouncing now." The blonde settled once more on her feet.

"Proven?" Xander asked his longest best friend.

Willow scrunched her face up, but she nodded, "Proven," she agreed. "Tara? Are you OK?"

Seeming to come out of a trance, Tara nodded, then blushed deeply. "It, it all seemed like it was my idea to do, do all that stuff," she stuttered slightly. "I didn't even think about it until after I was already doing it. Some of it seemed like my body was doing it before I even told it to do anything."

"Wow," Willow mumbled to herself. "This is, this is, this is . . ." she couldn't think of anything.

"Neat?" Xander offered with a goofy grin.

She glared at him, but it quickly faded into a pleasant, friendly smile. "So all that stuff with Buffy just a minute ago?"

"A test, to see if this was total command, or like hypnotism where you can't make somebody do something they don't already want to do. So, I asked Buffy, with the whole total honesty thing, what was the one thing that I couldn't get her to do no matter what, and then I *told* her to do it. And unfortunately, she just went off to do it I think." Xander explained.

"Do you know if there's a limit to this . . . power?" Tara asked.

Xander shook his head. "I can't control anyone completely, but if I tell them to do a long-term task, they'll do it until it's completed, and then they'll return to normal. At least that's how Mom described it to me."

"Mom?" Willow asked.

"Aphrodite," Tara answered for Xander.

"Right, I remember now," she mumbled again. Absently, Xander noticed that several times now Willow had scooted herself closer to him, and by this point her body was touching and practically rubbing up against his.

"Willow, I swear by all that I hold dear, that I did not cast another love spell," Xander blurted, holding his gaze steady and in front.

"What are you talking about Xander?" Willow muttered as her head got dangerously close to his own.

"I would be talking about the only other time that you have ever been this close to me and now nuzzling my neck, you were under a love spell at the time!" Xander quickly moved himself to standing, giving him déjà vu about the time he was talking about.

"Huh?" Willow was confused.

"Remember, high school, I got Amy to cast a love spell on Cordelia cause she broke up with me on Valentine's day and it backfired and every woman in Sunnydale suddenly was in love with me?" Xander was begging and praying that she remembered.

Willow stopped trying to get closer to him and held back for a moment, her gaze thoughtful. "Oh, yeah, I do remember that now, so what does . . ." she trailed off and her eyes went wide.

"Alexander Lavelle Harris, what have you done?" she demanded.

"The Gift of Obedience wasn't the only gift my mother gave me last night," Xander mumbled, feeling ashamed of himself, not that he could do anything about it.

"What, have every woman in Sunnydale fall in love with you?" Willow blurted.

"No!" Xander exclaimed, "It's lust! And I can't do anything about it, and neither can she! I swear Willow, I would never do that to you, and especially not to Anya! I love her. But this thing . . . I can't do anything about it."

"So that's why I've been dreaming about sucking your cock," Tara mused.

Willow and Xander turned and stared at the lesbian blonde.

"Did I say that out loud?" she asked, turning bright pink.

"Et tu Tara?" Xander joked.

"What exactly is this? I mean, are women going to start flocking after you like they did that time in High School?" Willow wanted to know.

Xander shook his head. "No, the way she explained it, I now give off some kind of pheromone that makes every attractive woman around me super-attracted to me. If they can control their hormones, then there's no controlling going on. And again, there's not a thing I can do about it."

Willow suddenly looked depressed.

"What's wrong Willow?" Tara asked her lover.

"Pheromones, while used to attract mates when in heat, they aren't an instant sex connection," Willow began to explain. "And while a complete stranger may even come on to Xander, after she takes a shower or washes herself, she'll be perfectly normal, so long as she never sees him again."

"I sense a 'but' coming," Xander dreaded.

Willow looked down at the ground as she said, "But, the longer that a person, a female is around the source of attractive pheromones, the more they'll build up in her system, even if she washes every hour for the rest of her life, the pheromones will get into our systems and just keep building up every time we're around you Xander."

Xander paled. The only woman he felt he could really handle was Anya, and she was certainly the only woman that he *wanted* to '_handle'_. But what Willow was saying that in order to protect all of his friends, he could admit it Giles was pretty much the only male companionship he had other than at work, from falling in lust with him and pretty much guarantee having sex with him at some point, or multiple points, was for him to never ever see them again. Or them him, whichever.

Then something occurred to him, what Aphrodite had told him last night when he questioned what to do if he didn't want certain people to be adversely affected by his pheromones. *Tell* them not to be!

"That's it!" he exclaimed.

"What?" both girls asked.

"I can use my power, I can *tell* you not to be attracted to me, and that way the pheromones won't work on . . ."

"NO!" they both instantly protested. Willow got to her feet in a flash and Tara finally moved from where she had been standing before them. Xander stepped back, flabbergasted at their protest.

"But . . ."

"No, Xander I want you to promise me something right now!" Willow demanded.

"Uh, okay," he meekly agreed.

"I want you to promise to never use your Obedience power on either of us," she told him.

Xander opened his mouth to go ahead and agree, but then his brain kicked it into high gear and he faltered, "Uh, I, I can't do that Willow."

Now Willow looked flabbergasted, while Tara didn't really seem surprised that was his answer.

"Why not?" the redhead wanted to know.

"Because I didn't even realize I was doing it earlier! There are going to be times where I slip up and give somebody an *order* even when I was just being sarcastic or making a joke or didn't mean for them to do it and stuff like that! And what if at some point in the future you need me to give you an *order*, to do something that could save your life or even the whole world? I'm sorry Willow, but as much as I hate controlling people, I know I can't make that promise because I also know there is now way that I can actually keep it, much as I want to."

"Oh," she mumbled, looking crestfallen. She let out a sigh.

"Then how about you promise not to ever change us permanently? And most definitely don't make us not attracted to you," she compromised.

"Please don't do that," Tara added her two cents.

Xander looked confused between the two of them, so he took a few steps forward, past them and then turned back around to face them. "Why is it that you don't want to be immune to this pheromone thing?" he asked seriously.

"It's not that," Willow hastily corrected.

"It's just that . . ." Tara faltered a little, but continued, "we like you. Both as a friend and as a male. And yeah that whole lesbian thing aside, if I would ever like a man like that, forced or otherwise, I'm glad that it's you. You're nice, and sweet, and you care about all of us and . . ." She stopped when her breathing had become heavy and irregular, and to all eyes she looked like she was in heat. Willow wasn't far off, looking at Xander like she had that night so long ago in his bedroom, just with a little less worship and a whole lot more steamy-eyed lust. Not to mention Willow's experience had considerably grown since that night so long ago.

Xander was half and half all of a sudden. Half of him was his conscience, what Angelus had once called his White Knight side. The half of him that knew right above wrong and was willing to go to any lengths to protect his friends no matter what. Then there was his human half, the half of him that had once had a dream that was strangely, far too strange he was thinking, very similar to this very situation.

Willow and Tara. Sexy Willow and very sexy Tara. Wanting him, and wanting to share him. Of course that had actually been a dream where the Slayer Spirit was trying to kill him, but he didn't let that little detail stop him.

"Is there any chance that you two have talked about this before?" he asked them directly.

They looked at each other first and did that silent communication thing, but then both looked at him and nodded answering together, "Yes."

"Just a little," Willow added. "You know the 'what if' game. Well I asked Tara, what if you liked guys, which guy would you pick out of the whole world?"

"And I picked you," Tara finished.

Xander audibly gulped, his heart pounding in his chest.

"Girls, listen to me," they both stood at attention, "I need you, I really, _really_ need you to give me one very good reason not to do this with you right now. Think hard and give me that reason right now."

They stood there, silent for several seconds, and then shared another silent look with each other before turning to obey his command. "There isn't one," they both answered together.

'_Sweet mother of . . . well _Mom_, if this is in any way your doing, I am _so _. . . THANK YOU!'_

Screw morals, he decided and fixed each of them with a glare. A lust-filled glare.

"Tara," the blonde straightened, "Take off your panties."

Immediately, Tara started to pull her dress up at the hip, drawing it up until the hem and lower half of her floral dress were bunched up around her waist. Then, reaching under the folds with both her hands, she tugged and the slowly pulled off her panties, frilly white hi-cut briefs with a slightly different floral pattern on them. Once the panties were off, she let her dress fall back into its natural form.

"Willow," he called. She stepped forward into his embrace, and he turned her around to face her girlfriend, embracing the red witch from behind.

"I'm betting this is something that you've always wanted to see her do," he whispered into her ear. "Now Tara, take off your bra, but keep your dress on." It took a bit of work, but the blonde wiccan managed to successfully unclip her bra and then draw off the matching undergarment without so much as loosening a strap on her dress.

"What are you planning mister?" Willow whispered back to him with a husky tone.

Xander grinned down at her and took a step back. "Willow, take off your dress," he ordered. She stiffened only slightly as her hands came up and with little work slipped the straps off her shoulders and with a little wiggling got the dress off, leaving her only in her underwear, black lace bra and silk bikini panties, and her shoes, soft brown sandals that went more with her dress than her underwear.

With a soft tug in his direction, he pulled Willow willingly back into his arms, slipping her feet from both her shoes and her dress. They both stared with lust-crazed eyes at Tara, who stared back just as wantonly and maybe even a little more desperate to close the distance between them.

Softly, Xander caressed the silk smooth skin of the loving and willing woman in his arms, stroking her bared torso, lightly caressing the sides of her silk-covered breasts, breathing and nibbling along her pale neck, and through it all he kept steady eye contact with the woman who was the lover of the woman in his grasp. And she was staring right back, with lust and love in her eyes, wanting what he offered and desiring the both of them equally. Finally, Tara couldn't take the intensity anymore and she did the equivalent of snapping under stress.

With a gasping moan, the blonde wiccan squeezed her naked thighs together beneath her flimsy dress, her hands reaching up to grab and maul at her breasts through it. Sighs of pleasure and relief escaped her lips as she finally received the minimum of the sensation she desired. Until her ministrations began to stroke her inner fires to a higher and greater intensity, making her lone hands not enough to satiate her needs.

"That," Xander whispered right into Willow's ear, his hand reaching around to her tease and torture her by coming tantalizingly close to caressing her breasts, but never enough to give her all the contact she craved. "That is what I'm planning, and what you've always wanted to see. Tara, the mousy witch, your lover and girlfriend . . . masturbating to the image of you in the arms of a man."

Willow cried out, gasping as the pure arousal of the moment hit her like a hammer hitting hot steel. "Oh Goddess, Baby I love you so much!" Willow cried out as she had a small mini-orgasm from the thought and the pure arousal Xander and Tara both were eliciting inside of her.

"Say that again," Xander commanded.

"Oh Goddess, Baby I love you so much!" Willow repeated breathlessly, her eyes saying just as much to her blonde lover.

Tara whimpered and gasped at Willow's words, both times. Her hands became a bit more frantic, desperate to fill her need. One trailed down to the juncture between her thighs and started to draw her dress up once more, trying to get to the flesh beneath. One strap of her dress fell off her shoulder and the attention of her remaining hand popped one of her C-cup breasts, topped with a hardened pink nipple, like a lone strawberry at the tip of an incredible mound of vanilla ice cream. With little a due, her hand reached this mound of flesh at practically the same moment her lower hand reached beneath the hem of her skirt. She fell to her knees as the stimulation became too much for her weakened legs. A loud wet sound, like a sponge being continuously squeezed over and over, filled the air of the training room. Along with the smell of female sex, a scent everyone currently in the room was very familiar with.

Xander had been hard from the moment that he got Tara to bounce up and down, but with the combination of Tara masturbating and Willow's nearly naked and very willing flesh beneath his hands, he was fully erect. And with his sudden new size, he couldn't hope to hide that fact from Willow, who was rubbing her ass into his crotch as much as he was roaming her flesh with his fingers.

"Oh goddess!" Willow gasped. She had broken out in a sweat from only a minute of watching Tara frig herself before them and what Xander was doing to her, but she could not recall one time in her past where she had been as _wet_ as she was right now.

"Xander, Baby, I need you! I need you now!" Willow cried out and turned herself around in Xander's arms, and before he could protest, she latched onto him at the mouth and proved that even though they had last kissed several years before, their chemistry brought them back together like it had been yesterday.

Xander opened his eyes a little when air was starting to get a little scarce, and he saw Tara, on the floor, her face scrunched up in a way between passion and pleasure, her lower hand was practically blurring and both her breasts had popped out. Suddenly she froze and with a loud whimper she shivered once, twice, three times before falling limp, her hands briefly dropping away.

Xander smiled, still kissing Willow and raised one of his hands to give Tara a 'come hither' motion. His other hand dipped further down to squeeze Willow's ass, which caused the redhead to give a high, muffled squeal of pleasure in response.

Tara, her eyes glazed and misty filled, slowly got to her feet, her dress deciding it wanted to stay on the floor, leaving the _natural_ blonde entirely naked. She had a trim, but plump sort of body. All curves, not as petite as Willow, nor as athletic as Buffy's frame, and still different from Anya's womanly curves.

Abruptly, surprising Willow, Xander broke the kiss, his stare widened and his breathing rate increased rapidly, as did his pulse, just from the sight of Tara naked. "Whoa," was the only word he could mutter, sounding rather like a character once played by Joey Lawrence on an old TV show called "_Blossom_".

Concerned over his sudden lack of attention to _her_, Willow turned and her eyes nearly flew out of their sockets as she looked the blonde wiccan up and down herself, who was stepping steadily closer to the embracing couple. "Whoa," she agreed in a similar tone.

"You're beautiful," Xander told her when she had reached them.

Tara blushed and looked down, but Xander caught her chin with his hand and lifted her gaze back up to his. "You're beautiful," he insisted. She smiled, still blushing, but now met his intense gaze under her own power.

"You are," Willow agreed, leaving Xander's reach for Tara's and embracing her girlfriend in a passionate kiss, easily equal to anything Xander and her had yet shared.

Xander's breath nearly stopped in his throat at the sight. He had to consciously force his lungs to keep operating, and that was very hard to do as he watched two _*very*_ beautiful women, one nearly naked, one ALL naked, share a passionate kiss and make out right in front of him. His mouth was suddenly dry and he had to wet his suddenly very chapped lips. All of that was nothing compared to the igniting fire in his loins, which his mother had somehow apparently brought out in him, and the sudden explosion he felt from his arousal alone.

"I think I just came from the sight of that alone," Xander told them.

They finally broke their kiss, and gave him a pair of mischievous grins that not only kept him hard, but almost made him cum again!

"Now you know how we felt," Willow told him in that oh-so-sexy 'innocent' voice of hers that he hadn't heard since Senior Year, and from a vampire in a leather fetishist outfit.

"My turn," Tara interrupted. She waved her hand at Xander at the same time casting a spell, "_Dissendium!_" Instantly all of his clothes, shirt, pants, shoes, and of course underwear and socks, flew off of him, some tearing to get off of him and flying all over the room.

Xander looked down, his full erection now easily visible, and his construction worker muscles also displayed before the nubile women. He looked back up at them, glaring with mock-anger, tinged with heavy lust as he said, "Oh, you are _so_ going to pay for that."

"I know," Tara gasped as she suddenly leaped up from Willow's arms into Xander's, wrapping her legs around him to keep herself with him.

Thankfully, he carried steel girders that weighed more than Tara's 180 lbs. Easily catching and holding her he opened himself to the kiss she initiated with him, while peripherally aware of Willow going to her knees, near his hardon, and knew that it was her hands that he suddenly felt around his tool.

Willow stared in stunned amazement at the sexual organ she now held in her tiny hands. Tiny in comparison to this giant anyway! Xander had been fucking Anya with this monster? No wonder she made so much noise about sex with him, she mused.

Even as her best friend, best male friend that is, and girl friend made out practically right on top of her, Willow was far more interested in examining Xander's cock up close. Oz had barely been 6 inches when fully erect, but the one good thing about her werewolf ex-boyfriend, he knew how to use it, and he knew how to please her in bed. And judging by what had happened so far, and the noises Tara was making from just being in Xander's arms, Xander both knew how to please in bed, _AND_ judging from his size, more than adequate equipment for the job.

She wrapped her hand around him, and her fingers _barely_ managed to fit around to touch one another. He was so hot, but the skin was so soft, like velvet but more delectable. And he was hard, but not a harsh kind of hard, more like the firmness of well-defined muscle. Muscle that was fun to squeeze, which she just did.

Xander gasped when Willow gave his shaft a sharp squeeze and let it out as a low moan as Tara mashed her breasts against his chest in a rhythmic motion, her thighs clenching tightly around his waist.

Absently, Willow brought her other hand up to feel and play with Xander's balls. Oz had always liked it when she did that, and . . .

The sharp intake of breath and shivering over the male body above her told her that she had done something very right. She tried it again, but the reaction did not repeat itself. Instead she began to move her other hand along the muscled foot-long shaft, enjoying and feeling every rib and vein of the muscles and both soft and firm tissue there. She would move her hand from the base where his shaft and balls met at the hips, all the way up to just beneath the flared head, which was pulsing with a bright pink/purple and was covered in a slick clear fluid that Willow could have sworn smelled like roasted almonds.

Curious, knowing that sweat tasted like salt even though it smelled muskier than that, Willow wanted to know what this fluid would taste like. So she reached out with her tongue and quickly licked all around the head, absorbing as much of the fluid as she could.

She was killing him, she had to be, Xander decided. He was already weak in the knees with what Willow was doing, but now _this_? Quickly, before he dropped her, he set Tara down next to him, careful not to bump or hit Willow or distract her from what she was doing.

"Is something wrong?" Tara asked, worried.

"Wrong?" Xander squeaked, "No, nothing's wrong. It's just that I almost dropped you because of what Willow is . . ." Xander trailed off as his eyes rolled back up in his heads and his legs almost gave out again.

Tara quickly looked down at Willow, and her own eyes widened with desire at the sight. The redheaded minx had taken Xander's cockhead and sucked it into her mouth and was now sucking on it like a baby would from a teat, obviously hoping to drink more of Xander's cum straight from the source.

"That little slut," Tara murmured, but just inside of Xander's hearing range.

Such language, coming from one who was known for her shyness was almost more than he could take, in addition to the half-decent blowjob his best friend from kindergarten was giving him. But just barely, he managed to hold back the fire enough to let it build further. What the result would be, he didn't want to say.

Willow soon discovered that she could actually fit more than just the massive head in her mouth, and without bidding, either from herself, Xander or Tara, she soon found herself trying to swallow Xander's entire cock, millimeter by millimeter. Her lovers stared in amazement as she actually managed to fit half of Xander's length into her throat, just on instinct alone.

But Willow didn't want just half, she wanted all of it, and taking into account what one learns from internet porn, she practiced breathing through her nose for a couple of minutes while Xander and Tara continued to make out just above her.

Tara was beside herself with lust, and what Xander was doing to her. Even with Willow, it had never been this intense before! His hands were almost all over her, while the most she could move hers was up and over his arms and shoulders. One hand would be at her breast, massaging it with such sweet caresses she almost swooned, the other at her hips, making her flesh vibrate with his fingers and hands, and then in the next moment the first hand would be at her ass, squeezing and rubbing her cheeks and coming dangerously close to her cleft several times, and the other between them, running over her tummy and between her boobs continuing their magic caresses.

Xander was amazed at how easy it was to excite the young witch. For Anya, this would be light foreplay. She would give him a blowjob while he caressed her body and "turned her on" and it would take almost half an hour of this before she even got wet enough to have her first orgasm. Of course, the extenuating circumstances in this case might explain why it was so easy, but it felt like to Xander that Tara was on the verge of cumming so hard and so big that it might make her pass out. And he really didn't want that to happen, not without a lot more intercourse first.

A deep vibration around his cock grabbed his attention away from Tara for half a second, and when he looked down at Willow, his eyes went wide with shock. He quickly grabbed Tara's head and forced her to look down as well. Instantly, she was off like a bottle rocket, screaming with pleasure and gushing in his hand. After a few seconds of this, she went limp in his arms, and he easily held her up; despite being deep-throated by a red haired minx so that her lips were all the way to the base of his cock, her nose buried in his pubic hair.

After a few seconds to get used to the sensation, Willow finally pulled back, slowly, sucking with her incredibly lung power as she did so. Xander shivered all over and felt the fires begin to break away from his control.

"Willow," he gasped out, his eyes closed shut as he strained to remain on his feet, "I'm gonna cum!"

This, rather than what he had hoped for, spurred the witch further on instead. In a matter of seconds she deep-throated him twice more, bathing his shaft with her tongue all the way on the 'downstroke', and sucking with all the force of her lungs on the 'upstroke'. She only had enough time to deep throat him one last time and keep her mouth around his cockhead before she felt his balls tighten up inside themselves, and what felt like the river of water coming down the fire hose travel up the shaft, and then into her mouth and down her throat as she struggled to swallow it all.

Of course, being a mortal girl, having *just* given her first successful blowjob, she couldn't possibly keep up and at least one quart of the gallon of cum Xander was pumping down her esophagus gushed out from her lips and drooled down her chin and onto her chest and down her torso.

What was amazing though was that even as Xander's cum drenched her throat, and her hands had been more preoccupied with keeping her balance, Willow's hips were jerking back and forth, up and down, and she was moaning constantly, her entire body shuddering in time with her swallows. She was cumming just from sucking him off!

Despite just having cum twice in a row herself, Tara was instantly ready and wet again. She knelt down next to her girlfriend and with no hesitation started to clean her, licking up Xander's cum, even as it was still coming and pouring out of Willow's mouth.

Finally, Xander finished and he fell back onto his own ass, is cock coming out of Willow's mouth with a loud and very audible 'Pop'! What cum she still had in her mouth dribbled onto her chin, and Tara abandoned cleaning her body in favor of french-kissing and sharing in such a feast with her lover.

Xander just stared at this, and was amazed to discover that he hadn't lost any hardness at all, and in fact this sight, was rousing the fires in him once more. Again, he aimed his thoughts towards the heavens as he thought, '_Thanks Mom!'_

For the moment anyway, he needed to catch his breath, so he sat back on his haunches and just watched as they shared his cum and then slowly cat-licked each other to clean off their bodies.

Ten minutes later, both ladies were cuddling up to him, and he was very pleased with the contentment he suddenly felt. It wasn't a familial contentment, or even that he felt in high school when he was with his friends. It wasn't even like the time where he had helped to save the world, by himself, and hadn't told a soul about it. And that had felt pretty darn good to.

No, this was a new feeling for him. There was a feeling of rightness to it that he just couldn't quite grasp just yet. He shrugged to himself. It didn't matter right then anyway. What did matter was . . .

"Tara, are you a virgin?" he asked after a couple minutes cuddling on the training mats.

Surprised, but no longer worried or concerned, by the sudden change of subject, Tara didn't hesitate in answering with total honesty. "Yes. I even still have my hymen intact. Can I ask why?"

"How would you like to change that, right now?"

Willow giggled and threw her lover a 'Go for it!' look and reached down and gave Xander's impressive cock an affectionate squeeze. Tara looked down, but still answered totally honest, "I want nothing more than to lose my virginity to you right now Xander. But I'm scared, that, that you'll hurt me, even if by accident."

Xander held Tara's face, angling her gaze up to his. "Hey," he said affectionately, "I would never intentionally hurt you. Besides, Willow's here with you, and I promise that's going to make all the difference in the world."

"How?"

"You'll see," Willow answered for him, catching on.

* * *

Buffy didn't know entirely why, but she found herself running though Sunnydale in the mid-morning, in her sports bra, training pants, and sneakers. And every time she saw a business that was open and she had ever once thought 'I could do that' about such a job, she wandered into the place of business and began asking and pestering about a job until she had filled out an application, or they told her the one thing that she refused to do. At least with such a job.

Now she found herself running into the Police Station of all places because of that damn job fair in high school. And the scary part of it was, as she talked to first a desk Sergeant and then a Detective, and then the Department Captain, she _knew_ she could do this. The Police Academy in the state of California was basically a weekend course, at least for Sunnydale it was. Buffy filled out an application.

After the Police Station, thankfully, she stopped running into every business that she saw . . . until as she was passing the Espresso Pump on her way back to the Magic Box, she saw a flier in a garbage bin. She wasn't sure why her eyes were drawn to it, but she couldn't help noticing it all the same.

Stopping, she picked it out of the garbage and quickly read what it said; "Pussycat Palace: Professional Gentleman's Club Live Entertainment Cheap Drinks Weekly Contests" and then there was an address down at the bottom.

Suddenly, Buffy stiffened and she threw the flier back into the garbage and started running about half as fast as she could, because she also knew this address was pretty far off and she would be out of breath as it were when she got there, half-pace or not. Because as stupid as it was, Buffy remembered with sudden startling clarity that the summer she had run away, she had once had the thought that if she really wanted to, she could very easily be a stripper for a living instead of a Diner waitress.

Half an hour later, Buffy stopped by the closed entrance of the Pussycat Palace. It looked deserted. It was in the bad part of town, but actually, as she read the hours beside the door, it looked closed. That is until she saw the parked car in the lot, figuring it to be the manager or somebody who knew about getting a job here. She stayed outside for a moment longer, needing it to catch her breath and then after that started looking around for an open door to the inside.

Surprisingly the front door was both the first one she tried and the one that opened to her. Inside, Buffy wasn't too surprised by the decorum, it matched almost perfectly with what TVs and movies said stripper joints and "Gentleman Clubs" all looked like.

There was the bar against one entire wall, and directly across from it was the main stage, with small little 'island' stages scattered throughout. Booths, and mini-bar tables galore filled the rest of the smoky room. There was, however, one thing that Buffy did not expect and was not in the TV or movies either. A tall, and very beautiful woman in jeans and a work shirt was at the bar, reading a newspaper, a mug of beer in front of her. She was the only other person in the entire place as far as Buffy could tell.

"Excuse me?" Buffy called out, breaking the silence, but the woman didn't so much as twitch. "Uh, I saw a flier downtown, I was wondering if this place was hiring."

"We don't hire minors, not even for waitressing or barkeeping," the woman monotoned, still reading her paper. After another beat she asked, "How old are you sweetheart?"

"Twenty-one," Buffy answered straight forward.

The woman, probably about or over 6 feet tall, had long voluptuous red hair going down to the middle of her back. She was white, and she had the most impressive womanly figure that Buffy had ever seen outside of a magazine. Her green eyes flashed when as she looked the Slayer over, making Buffy wonder what kind of image she presented, dressed only in her training outfit, sweat drenching every pore of her body and staining her minimal clothing, and her hair must have been a complete mess.

"You look younger," the woman said as she stood up from the bar and walked towards Buffy. That was when Buffy noticed the mirror just above the bar, which is probably how the woman knew Buffy was there. "What's your name kid?" she asked.

"Buffy," she answered.

"Cute," she smirked, but just kept looking the blonde over. "All right, you've got the figure, but no way would I put you on stage. I could offer you a waitressing job. You know much about bartending?"

"Not really," Buffy didn't know what to do next, so she just stood there patiently, letting the woman inspect her at her leisure.

"That's all right," the woman waved off her question. She stood in front of Buffy and looked the Slayer in the eyes. "My name is Rebecca, I own and manage the Pussycat Palace, and sometimes, when I feel like it, I also dance here. You have any problems working for a woman at a place like this."

"No, but two of my best friends are gay so I certainly don't discriminate," Buffy told her. "And I think I can do the job, and the one I've got right now sucks beyond compare so I'm looking for just about anything better. And who knows, I may actually be happy here."

Rebecca snorted and rolled her eyes. "If you're looking for happiness girl, you are definitely in the wrong place. The only thing a place like this is good for is making a lot of fast money. That's why I set this place up here. It's the only Gentleman's club in the city, despite L.A. being so close, this is more out of the way, but still, it's fast money, and sometimes a lot of it. Rules are rules, and I don't do pimping, drugs, and the best drink you're going to get here is a Light Draft. Tips, for the dancers are split 50/50. For waitresses and barkeeps you keep everything your given. We've got bouncers, but they're only for stopping fights and kicking people out when they get too rough. Nothing else."

"Could I apply for the Bouncer job?" Buffy suddenly asked.

Rebecca did a double-take at the small slip of a girl. That was when she saw 'Buffy' was a little bit more than just her name.

"Tell you what, come in on Friday, I'll give you an interview. Just before sunset. Till then, I don't want to see your cute little face in this place, got it?" Rebecca told her.

"Not a problem," Buffy answered back in the same manner and turned around and left the club.

* * *

"Oh GODDESS!" Tara screamed her third orgasm under Willow's lapping tongue at her pussy. As soon as her muscles stopped twitching, she grabbed her lover by the hair and dragged her up so she could taste and clean her cream off of Willow's face.

"Well?" Xander asked, caressing both women as they kissed and petted each other.

Willow managed to get enough of her mouth away from Tara's cleansing tongue to answer, her eyes meeting with his in a lusty stare, "She's _dripping_! I don't think she's going to be any *more* ready Xander!"

"Good," he said and softly began to tug Tara away from the other woman.

Tara whimpered, trying to get back to her lover, but when she felt Xander's hands on her in places where only Willow's hands had been before, she tried to turn to him instead, but he kept her on the mats. "Are you ready for this Tara?" he asked, showing his concern for her wellbeing.

"Oh gods YES!" she cried, her lust driving her to do anything to satisfy her growing need.

"Good," Xander said again, then he ordered, "On your hands and knees!" Willow knew he was talking to Tara, so she stayed lying flat on the mats, and groaned appreciatively as her girlfriend stood like a bitch in heat before this man. Her breasts hung down enticingly, and the arch of her back and the curve of her hips just made Willow want to go right back to eating the blonde out.

"Now, having only ever had my virginity taken, I can't say that this won't hurt Tara," he told her, rubbing his hands all over, up and down her back and over her ass and thighs. "But I can promise that it is going to feel _really_ good before it's over."

Tara looked over her shoulder at the man that was going to be the first, and only she promised herself, male to ever truly have her. In body at least. "Fuck me Xander. Fuck me hard!" she begged, wiggling her hips and ass to further entice him.

He smiled in a knowing manner. "First," he said, "you have to repay Willow for her getting you so ready. Eat her pussy until she cums no less than 10 times. And spread your legs a little more."

Willow had maneuvered herself so that she was lying directly in front of Tara, holding herself up on her elbows so she could look her girlfriend in the eye as she was getting her first dick. Willow still remembered her first time, and how she felt, both during and afterwards. She grinned in anticipation for what Tara was about to experience.

Tara felt her mouth drawn like two magnets of opposite polarity together with Willow's nether lips, but she kept her eyes locked with the redhead. Her knees shifted a bit further apart, and combined with the angle she had to bend to reach Willow's pussy, the blonde felt herself entirely exposed to Xander. She shivered at the thought, and then again when she felt something large and hot press up against her own nether lips.

Willow was already sweating, and her breathing had picked up from Tara's attention to her pussy already. The way her entire body flushed and her own breasts heaved was something Xander figured he could never get tired of seeing.

Slowly, so as not to spook her, Xander began to push his cockhead into Tara's virgin cunt. Thanks to Willow, her vagina was entirely open and leaking enough natural lubrication that all Xander had to do was line it up and provide a little pressure to get his larger than average tool inside her.

Tara felt the alien intrusion into herself, and felt herself stretching to accommodate her new visitor, a very strange, but incredibly pleasant sensation. Once his head was all the way inside, he waited for several moments, letting the blonde witch get used to it before he began to slowly inch his way forward until he felt some kind of barrier or block against his further progress. Tara whimpered into Willow's pussy, but it was also obviously not a whimper of pain.

Grinning, he pulled back a little, and then set his own legs, and then with a single thrust, he broke through her hymen and bottomed himself out inside her, forcing his member all the way in her to the hilt. Despite his order, Tara's mouth broke contact with Willow's pussy as she arched up and let out a loud, long scream of pleasure. And it was pleasure. There had been no pain at all. One moment she was stretching to accommodate him, then next it felt like she had been shot up the pussy with something so incredibly divine that she couldn't begin to describe it.

She felt so full, but hungry for more, and his order for Willow to cum ten times still stood out in her mind. Staying on her hands and knees as Xander remained locked to the hilt inside her, she wiggled around some, gasping at the pleasure that gave her. She quickly looked back over her shoulder, her look saying it all, but she added to it by saying aloud, "Fuck me Xander.'

He grinned, and then began to slowly pull himself out of her sopping cunt as she went back to eating Willow's pussy. The retrieval was just as, if not more pleasurable as his initial invasion had been.

Willow had fallen to her back after Tara began to eat at her in earnest, having watched Tara's deflowering with a hungry air. She was so jealous that Tara had gotten to try Xander's incredible cock first, but she quelled that with realizing how special it was for the blonde witch. A sudden inspiration came to her and she grinned at the thought as she began to wiggle around herself, but not to entice, so she could rotate herself so she was under Tara in a 69 so she could watch close-up Xander fucking her.

Tara soon realized what her girlfriend wanted and just as quickly helped her to move around and soon, as Xander began to slowly pump his member in and out of her at a steady pace, driving her insane with pleasure, they were in position, Willow watching from between her thighs as Xander's massive cock pumped in and out of her.

Willow had no words to describe what she was seeing, or how it made her feel as she watched her best friend violate her girlfriend in the most intimate of ways. It made her hott that was for sure. Soon her curiosity peaked, just as it had when she had seen the fluid of Xander's pre-cum, and she began to lick at the juncture where man and woman fused together.

Tara tensed, and her inner muscles rippled and squeezed tightly around Xander's cock, though he was in no danger of blowing his load so soon. Although he too had almost lost it when he felt Willow's tongue where he and Tara were joined.

They kept up a steady pace for several more minutes, Willow getting her licks in where she could, Xander keeping a steady pace driving Tara insane with pleasure. Finally, Xander decided that he did want to cum in Tara and he picked up his pace a little, holding the voluptuous blonde by the hips to keep her steady.

Tara went from having one orgasm after another to having one lone continuous orgasm that just wouldn't stop so long as Xander kept pumping into her and Willow kept licking her. She almost lost track of what she was doing herself, but she moved one of her hands to the task of helping her in Willow cum herself, letting the redhead keep up with the blonde on top.

Xander grinned savagely as he doubled his pace again and Tara lost all semblance of control, at first letting out a hoarse, never ending cry, but then she seemed to have lost her voice and just kept trembling all around him. She bounced in time with his thrusts, but it was also quite obvious that she could no longer do much more than accept his seed and the pleasure he was giving her.

At last he felt the fire build to an acceptable level and he let loose a stream of cum deep inside her, bringing an end to her minutes long multi-orgasm. Willow, beneath the both of them, enjoyed her tenth orgasm, draining the last of her strength, as she ate up the tasty mixture of both Tara and Xander's cum.

Finally, as Xander finished, feeling very satisfied and that same contentment he couldn't identify before, Xander pulled out, drowning Willow's face and head with all of the cum lodged up inside Tara when he did. Tara was limp, and nearly unconscious, but as both original Slayerettes watched, her pussy was still moving, contracting around the space where Xander's cock had once occupied. Even now she was still cumming, they realized.

Willow herself was exhausted and could barely summon the energy to help Xander move her girlfriend off of her. Not that she had really minded that much her being on her.

"Are we satisfied?" Xander asked with a goofy grin as he worked all three of them into a cuddle on the stained mats.

Willow couldn't help it she started laughing. He joined her after a minute and they didn't stop until they felt Tara stir between them, and even then it died slowly.

"What exactly happened here?" Willow asked as their senses slowly realigned, the lust having passed.

"I think it was pretty obvious to me Wills," Xander joked.

"No, that's not what I . . ." she tried to correct herself.

"We fucked Xander, and he fucked us back," Tara answered, sounding like she was a few seconds from falling asleep.

"I know _that_," Willow sighed. "I meant . . . why? Why did we, well we did, seduce him? Yeah, that pheromone thing made us interested, but you and I are totally committed to each other Tara, right?"

"Yep," Tara answered, her eyes drooping a little.

"So if we had wanted to, we could have said no to our hormones and not seduced him, correct?"

"That's the way it was explained to me," Xander added his input.

"So . . . why did we want to seduce Xander?" Tara guessed her girlfriend's real question.

"Yeah," Willow nodded with a sigh.

They lay there in contemplative silence for several more minutes before Xander finally got up. "We can philosophize and ask life-changing relationship questions later. Right now, there's no telling when Giles or Anya might decide to come in here, despite my commands from earlier. Lets get cleaned up and make this place a little less . . . smelly if we can. And that is *not* an order!" he insisted.

A quick trip to the bathroom, using washcloths to clean off each other, they all got cleaned up and dressed in about ten minutes. Xander's clothes however weren't exactly wearable, considering what Tara had done earlier. So, faced with the prospect of wearing nothing for the rest of the day, Xander decided a little cheating certainly couldn't hurt.

"You want me to teleport to your house and get you some clothes and then teleport back here?" Willow asked the still naked Xander.

"I'm giving you the choice Willow, since I know that there are still some bugs with that teleporting spell," he answered her question.

"But . . . couldn't you just stay like this?" she saw his face harden so she quickly changed her question around, "Or I could just teleport *you* to your house. I promise nothing bad would happen."

"It's not that, though I do believe you," Xander assuaged them, "But my car is here, and everyone, namely Giles, Anya, and Buffy saw me enter back here. If all of a sudden I'm coming back through the front door, there will be questions that are way too awkward to answer right now. So please, Willow, will you do this for me?"

Willow sighed, and then reluctantly nodded her head. "Fine. Give me some room." Obediently both of her lovers stepped back and let Willow concentrate on the magic she was calling. In a flash of red light, she disappeared.

"Now we've still got to clean up this mess," Xander observed, not only talking about the fluid stains, but also the training equipment Buffy had been using earlier.

"Oh, not to worry," Tara told him, "We had that all planned out before we even started helping Buffy with this exercise." With that she turned towards the mess in the room and quickly cast a spell that when finished, a wave of white magical energy traveled out from her across the whole room, and in its wake it left a perfectly clean training room, exactly as Giles always likes to keep it.

"Cool," Xander observed.

Less than a minute later, Willow appeared in a red flash of light, carrying several of Xander's clothes. Just not clothes that he would have picked. Black leather pants which Anya had gotten him on a whim over the summer, a Navy silk shirt that he only ever wore to special occasions like funerals or church, and the leopard-print underwear Anya had gotten him for his last birthday.

Groaning, and ignoring the jibes and the stares the witches cast his way, he got dressed. Thankfully his boots had survived Tara's stripping spell. He had just finished getting dressed when the back door opened and Buffy, looking sweatier and more tired than ever entered.

"Hey guys," she said, sounding in a much better mood than when she had left.

"Hey Buff," Xander greeted, being a little cautious.

"Hi Buffy," the witches greeted her together, smiles planted to their faces. Xander blushed slightly, but tried to hide it.

"Uh, thanks for helping me train earlier guys," she thanked them, "But I'm gonna head on home now. Change and maybe get a shower."

"Hey, tell you what, I can drive you Buff, I've got to get ready for work this afternoon as it is," he said, getting up and getting his things, car keys and wallet.

Buffy looked about to protest, but then she shrugged and decided not to argue. "Sure," she replied and got her own stuff, towel and duffelbag. Together they walked out to the front shop, Willow and Tara trailing behind Xander like the Cordettes had done for Cordy in High School.

Outside, Giles, behaving very normal for the ex-Watcher, was helping a customer while Anya was at the register, still counting money. Xander quickly walked up to her, and from the other girls' point of view was telling her that he was leaving. However the moment that he turned to escort Buffy to his car, Anya stopped counting the money and put it all back in the safe or register and helped the next customer to come her way.

Tara and Willow hung back and waited until Buffy and Xander were out the door before turning to each other, and giggling the whole way, scurried back to the back room. Giles, counting his blessings, pretended not to notice a thing.

**END Chapter 1**


	57. X Nin: Team 7

Training Ground 7:

"Hey Sakura-chan! Teme!" Naruto called and growled respectively at his teammates as they approached the training ground at the appointed time, an hour after dawn. "What have you been up to?"

"Naruto?" Sakura gasped at seeing the class clown and Dead Last already standing there in the middle of the training ground Kakashi had told them to meet at yesterday. "What are you doing her so early? What time did you get here this morning?"

"Huh?" Naruto was genuinely confused by the question. "What are you talking about Sakura-chan? I never left after I got here the minute after Kakashi-sensei told us that this was where we'll be doing our survival training for the day..."

"You-you-YOU SPENT THE WHOLE NIGHT OUT HERE?" she screeched, her anger, surprise, and confusion intermingling that 'Inner Sakura' was released when asking the question.

"Heh heh heh..." Naruto sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck and figured he might as well admit it to the both of them, they were his teammates now after all. "Well, the last time I went on a survival training was during that camping trip with Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-teme and the whole class about a year and a half ago..."

"Oh, yeah, I remember that," Sakura recalled.

"Hn," Sasuke grunted, indicating he too remembered the incident in question. And still found it funny.

"Well, as everybody knows, I forgot all my stuff and was totally unprepared for absolutely everything," he continued, "but while everybody else was practicing chakra and tracking and everything else, Iruka-sensei, to 'punish' me, took me into the woods and showed me how to get all the stuff I would need from everything around me, and also showed me a lot of ways to survive in the woods and lots of other useful things. Not that I realized it at the time of course."

"But that still doesn't explain why you were out here the whole night?" Sakura pressed the issue.

"Oh, I was scouting the area, and seeding it in preparation for today's exercises," Naruto explained. "You know, traps and stuff. But also bolt holes and secured spots where we can be hidden from detection or even attack from safety while still able to defend ourselves. I also mapped out the whole area so I know where every tree, bush and just about everything else in the area is."

Sakura and Sasuke both blinked in surprise. It was a good idea, though a bit extreme for just a training exercise, and they were surprised the dobe thought of it at all.

Naruto frowned at hearing those whispers of thought, but let it go.

In all honesty, what he'd really done was listen to every thought going through Kakashi's head and what the man planned to do as well as what this "test" was really all about. Then he tried to push a bit deeper, without going too deep, and asked the man's subconscious mind what _he_ would do if he had to take the test. A million different thoughts and scenarios, from memories of when he _had_ undergone the same test, to regrets and day dreams of what he wish he had done instead, but also analysis of what had happened before, during and after the test, and what had happened when Kakashi had given the same test to other graduates that did not pass.

Naruto had decided, even before the meeting on the roof of the Academy was over, to do what Kakashi had not, yet wished he had, which was to be more prepared for what was to come during the test. One of the factors of which was to seed the area with traps, safety perches, and escape routes in case one was ever cornered. Another was that he would have 'learned the lesson' of the test sooner than he actually had.

Naruto took that lesson to heart immediately. The mantra echoed throughout his mind much as it did Kakashi's. Though Kakashi had heard it first from a teammate rather than his sensei, the lesson remained the same; those who don't follow the rules are trash, but those who abandon their comrades is worse than trash.

Naruto didn't feel like being either to be honest.

"Trying to get an advantage you don't know what to do with, eh _dobe_? I wouldn't even bother. You'll just slow me down trying to explain whatever stupid plan you thought up. Probably a bunch of lame ass pranks, like you pulled off yesterday. Hn," Sasuke sniffed and turned away from the two of them. "Both of you just stay out of my way.

Sasuke however, Naruto brooded, was not making it any easier.

Ten minutes later, Sakura and Sasuke noticed Naruto scratching his head a lot. Not like he had lice or anything, but more like he had a headache and was subconsciously rubbing his head to relieve the pain or something. What he was actually doing, not that he would share that information with them, was practicing his telepathy once again. He quickly tracked down Kakashi, but was surprised to find him being briefed by the Hokage. Apparently the Old Man knew very well what Kakashi was doing today and was perfectly OK with him making them wait around all morning and then have a little less than an hour for the actual test, making them starve themselves to boot. The briefing was rather interesting too, as if Kakashi accepted the team, he'd have to be prepared to do quite a lot of D-Rank missions for the next couple of months. But if he denied them, as he had every other team he'd ever been offered, then the Hokage wanted him to go on a long-term A-Rank mission to Rain Country. Something about a... bad root?

Twenty minutes after that, Naruto got bored and went back into the woods, ignoring the shouts and sniffs of indignation from Sakura and Sasuke. Three and a half hours later, Naruto, a lot messier than he'd been going in, came out of the woods just as Kakashi arrived.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura screamed, pointing angrily at the jounin.

"You're four hours late, Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto, using a wet leaf from a sycamore tree to clean his face and hands. He made sure to speak in a highly respectful tone. After all, the man deserved his respect at the very least. Especially considering what he was about to go through.

Kakashi couldn't help shivering in fear at the statement from the blond, nor his oddly respectful tone.

"Yes, well..." Kakashi was about to give some excuse, but Naruto beat him to the punch.

"How was the briefing with the Hokage?"

Sakura and Sasuke blinked and with Kakashi they all stared at the orange-clad ninja, stunned.

Naruto just grinned at them and finished cleaning himself up.

"How did you...?" Kakashi started to ask, and then shook his head, dropping the matter entirely.

"Never mind," he sighed and then pulled out the bentos and the alarm clock. "OK, it's set for noon."

He held up the bells and explained, "Here are two bells. Your task is to take these from me before the alarm rings. Those who cannot get a bell by noon, get no lunch. I'll not only tie you to one of the stumps, but I will even eat right in front of you."

_'So this is why he told us not to eat,'_ Naruto heard Sakura and Sasuke both moan in their thoughts.

"You only need to get one bell," Kakashi continued. "There are only two, so one of you will definitely be tied to a stump. And... the person who doesn't take a bell fails. So, at least one of you will be sent back to the Academy."

Naruto blinked. He wasn't quite sure _how_ he knew it, but the moment Kakashi said that last part, Naruto knew without any doubt in his mind that Kakashi was lying. It wasn't like alarm bells or anything, just that he _knew_ Kakashi was lying, and that Kakashi himself knew that he was lying, intentionally. It was subtle, but only about as subtle as words appearing in the same color as his mask being stitched to said mask with the word 'LIE' in bold and obvious lettering for only Naruto to read.

"You can use your weapons and any ninjutsu you know. You won't succeed unless you come at me with the intent to kill."

Naruto frowned. No lies that time. In fact, just the opposite, as he was entirely serious with that last statement. He genuinely, and with plenty of past experience to back it up, honestly believed that to be a true statement.

"But!" Sakura protested, fear and concern radiating from her, "You'll be in danger!"

Naruto might normally have said something, but he respected Kakashi-sensei too much at that moment to do so. Besides, he was in the Jounin's head right then, and Kakashi was powerful and skilled and experienced and pretty much impossible for Academy graduates to beat, no matter who they were or how talented they might be. Naruto stayed quiet, sensing Kakashi's surprise from that action.

Sasuke, on the other hand, scoffed. "Hn. You couldn't even avoid Naruto's pranks yesterday. He's not really that inventive, but I don't have a problem with you wanting to test us in this way. Are you prepared for the consequences though?"

Kakashi just smiled, at least Naruto got the mental impression of a smile from him, and replied, "In the real world, those with no talent often bark the loudest. Well, ignore, Mr. _Rookie_ and start when I say."

Naruto frowned as he experienced something he never had before. The feeling of mounting rage and the intention to take action based upon it. He briefly thought of trying to diffuse it, like he had Sasuke's depression from earlier on, but he held back from actually trying. That... feeling, that rage, it was... it was all-consuming, and Naruto was truly frightened that he may have been swept away by it if he had tried.

None of them saw it happen, but Naruto _felt_ it happen.

Sasuke took out a kunai, three kunai in fact, threw one at the Jounin's head, and charged with the other two in hand. It was over that quickly.

By the time the other two had blinked, Kakashi had Sasuke face-down on the ground, one hand holding the boy's arms behind his back, the other having taken one of the boy's kunai and now held it at his throat. The other kunai was still in Sasuke's hand, but thanks to Kakashi's grip, the point was aimed straight for Sasuke's heart and would pierce it from the back if only a little more pressure was applied on either of their parts. Standing just behind Kakashi, holding the kunai that Sasuke had thrown, Naruto held it at their Jounin Sensei's carotid artery.

Kakashi felt the pressure at his neck and a small amount of Killing Intent, from both boys, but more from Naruto than Sasuke at the moment.

"You may not have said we could start yet, Kakashi-sensei," Naruto whispered, "but that doesn't mean I just stand by while you threaten my teammate, no matter how much of a bastard he is. Let him up, Kakashi-sensei, or we'll see how much you really meant your last statement."

"Hm?" Kakashi turned his head.

Naruto saw, felt, _experienced_ the thoughts even as they flit through the Jounin's mind. He lifted his left leg and arched his right foot, already moving to jump to the side, also moving the kunai close enough to cut through the man's throat. At the exact same moment, Kakashi moved his head away from the pressure and kicked out, intending to trip and then knock back the would-be-genin at his back. Only to have said would-be-genin perfectly dodge his attack and keep the pressure at his throat exactly the same.

Enough games, he thought. He switched out, moving back next to the clock, and even put the two of Sasuke's kunai he had control over back in the boy's pouch before he even realized it. The same moment Kakashi vanished, Naruto cast aside the smoke from the technique, grabbed Sasuke by his shirt and dragged him to his feet, and dashing forward with him so they were both beside Sakura by the time Kakashi was by the clock.

"Here," Naruto handed Sasuke his kunai back, "Don't lose it this time. And both of you, make for the trees as soon as you can, but stay out of the underbrush. I'll show you the safe spots... if you'll let me."

"Why should we...?" Sasuke started to growl, but Kakashi spoke up instead.

"Well it seems like you're prepared to come at me with intent to kill. So, you've finally acknowledged me?" he asked, looking each of them in the face. "Heheheh, seems like I'm beginning to like you guys."

"OK, let's get going. Ready..."

They all three tensed.

"START!"

TBC...?


	58. GODS Part 4

Chapter 2

_Powers_

It had been over a week since his "Awakening", and Xander was just beginning to understand what Ron and Kes were talking about when they said just because his powers had fully matured, did not mean he knew how to use them yet. And there was always room for growth.

Fortunately, the worst of it came at the end, over the weekend, Xander's senses finished their "maturing" and he spent the entire weekend having every single one of his senses pushed beyond more limits of pain, pleasure, and sensation than any other human could ever imagine. Xander, since he had to live at "home", managed to get by, by hearing, smelling, and tasting the worst combination of elements that humans could experience. Compared to two and a half days of his home life in surreal 4-D quality, everything else the world had to offer was sweeter than candy.

He also learned to "tune" his senses, so that he immediately focused in on one scent or sound rather than experiencing the whole world at super sense level, and the rest of the time he managed to keep his senses at the 'normal' human level.

Xander also noticed the other physical aspects of his maturing powers continue to grow over the week, and one aspect in particular. Good thing that he had the excuse of a good lunch with free twinkies to answer Willow's persistent questions of why he was smiling so much on Friday. It wouldn't be good to announce to the whole school that his endowment now exceeded the "majority" of all the other males at Sunnydale High. Not that he compared.

Xander's strength and speed and even his endurance levels had peaked to higher than he ever would have imagined possible before. Keeping in mind his promise to Ron and Kes about no displaying powers in public, Xander took this to heart and made sure to keep up what was now totally an act of geeky nobody at the bottom of the High School "food chain". And though he could now probably stake vamps as well as Buffy could, even on patrol, Xander just hung back and stuck to the normal routine he had. He also had the added responsibility of keeping Willow safe, at least he told himself that to make up for the ego blows his forced secret identity gave him.

It was now Tuesday, and the entire Sophomore class was here at the Sunnydale Zoo, officially for Science class, but mostly just because it had become routine that while the Seniors went to the Beach, the Juniors went to the Museum, and the Freshmen went to the Cheese Factory, the Sophomores went to the Zoo.

Unfortunately, Buffy was not exactly getting into the spirit of things. "Well…it's nothing. We used to do the whole 'zoo trip every year at my old school. Same ole, same ole."

Xander couldn't help himself as he rolled his eyes. What made this different was that for the past minute, ever since he and Willow had come racing up to share the albeit gross excitement over the zebra fiasco, he had been _feeling_ Buffy's boredom, as well as a minor bit of self-depreciation and general depression, but over what he couldn't identify. Mostly he just focused himself on turning those feelings on their heels.

So with a smile in his voice, he admonished the Slayer. "Buffy this is not just about looking at a bunch of animals, this is about not being in class!" Then he and Willow looked at her expectantly.

As expected, her face slowly changed from depressed boredom to a slight smile bordering on the mischievous type. "You know you're right," she suddenly realized. "Suddenly all of the animals look shiny and new!"

"Gotta have perspective," Xander nodded his head to agree.

"Although the zebra thing was pretty cool," Willow inserted, trying to get into the conversation.

Xander smiled, somehow feeling Willow's desire to be included again. Buffy sated and feeling in the spirit of field tripping again, he hastily moved to agree with his best friend, sounding excited and youthfully exuberant all again. "Yeah, you shoulda been there Buff, especially the way the guy zebra wooed the girl by buying her flowers and taking her to see "I dream of Africa" first. Then there was this involved process of the guy jumping the girls bones."

Buffy just gave him an incredulous look, which thankfully he took as a sign to be quiet now.

Instead of listening, wholly, to Willow's answering reply, he decided to "train" himself a bit and see if he could hear either girl's thoughts. He hadn't really had as much luck with that as he'd have wished, seeing the advantage of hearing what women want from him and all, but as Kes reminded him so often in his dreams, practice makes a god, not lounging about waiting for it to happen on its own. Despite all that, the nightly lessons he received from her and Ron in his dreams helped him deal with his body's new capabilities.

As they walked along, Xander concentrated on quieting his own 'inner' thoughts and sought out Buffy and Willow's minds. Both surprising and unsurprising, the first thoughts that he heard were Willows, while Buffy he couldn't get a whisper out of, though he still felt her emotions. The trick to emotions Kes had taught him early on, and wasn't really a mental power, but a high-speed analysis of a person's body language. People broadcast their emotional states so much more than they are aware of just in the way they move.

Willow's thoughts however left his head spinning and wishing that he had waited until he was sitting before "training".

'_I wonder what Xander thought of the zebras. I wonder if it gave him any ideas. It certainly gave me some ideas. Why is Xander so quiet all of a sudden? Maybe I should change the subject, how do I get him to notice me, and how the heck can I make him mine, and how…'_

Xander shook his head, rubbing his temple slightly as he let go Willow's thoughts. It was giving him a headache at how loud her thoughts were, not to mention she had literally broadcast them for him to hear, while speaking very rapidly at Buffy about the zebra experience. Oh, wait, she's changed the subject already.

Xander caught back up with reality from his momentary loss with his "training", and saw what Willow had asked a question about.

"What are Kyle and his buds doing with Lance?"

"Oh, playing with him like a cat plays with a mouse," Xander said certainly, a feeling of great annoyance coming from Buffy. That was when the shield around Buffy's thoughts finally broke, and Xander caught a glimpse of a memory of what had happened to Buffy just before he and Willow had raced up. Xander frowned for a moment as he considered what Buffy _might_ actually do if she were the one to go after the crew, and she was already on pretty thin ice with Principal Flutie.

"What is it with those guys?" Buffy asked, her annoyance coming clearer through her voice than her thoughts.

"Oh, they're obnoxious," Willow answered, "Professionally."

"Well every school has them," Xander supplied, finding the fact fascinating in itself while at the same time hoping to distract Buffy from trouble. "You get your desks, some blackboards, and some mean kids."

"Yeah well I better track…"

"I'll handle it," Xander hurried to intercede. "This is a job that doesn't require any actual slaying," he tried to put an easy mood into his voice in hopes of not offending. And the slight swelling of pride that he could handle something the Buffster didn't need to didn't hurt either.

With that, he ducked under the tape and hurried after the group. He also focused his senses, well two of them anyway, ahead so he knew what to expect. That same 'night vision' thing happened when he entered the darkness of the caves as well as being able to hear what Kyle and his gang were doing to Lance.

"I don't see any hyenas," he heard Lance say. Which ofcourse is when he heard a low growl that seemed to be echoed throughout the entire cave, followed by some yipping barks that almost sounded like laughter.

"OK, now we've seen it, lets go," Lance said, fear in his voice. Xander quickened his pace.

"It looks cute," he heard one of the girls say, Rhonda he thinks.

"I think it looks hungry," he heard Kyle say just before sounds of a struggle reached his superhuman ears. "Come on Spot, supper time!"

"Ow! Ow! Come on guys, its not funny! OW! Stop it! Stop it!" Lance started shouting for help.

Xander stepped in just in time to see the four of them about to shove Lance over the railing and into the Hyena pit, several of the predators were already gathering, their mean yellow eyes glittering. The young god didn't hesitate after that. He didn't even notice the red marks on the floor glowing as soon as he stepped into the circle. He just easily picked Lance out of their grasp and threw him back out of the circle, out of harms way.

"Hey!" he shouted, even going so far as to violently pull the rest of them back, "Why don't you pick on someone your own species?"

"What, are you gonna get in my face?" Kyle stepped up, ready to retaliate.

A sudden low and loud growl drew all five of their attentions to the lone hyena that was standing there. The others were hidden in the shadows so even Xander couldn't see them. Not that he, or any of the others were looking at the hidden ones. They were looking at the one with the mean, glowing yellow eyes. Yellow eyes that filled their vision…and drowned them within the hyena itself.

Xander didn't know what was happening. He felt like…like…he was being wrapped up by some net or rope that couldn't be seen, only felt, and then drug down, forcefully into a place at the back of his own mind. He tried to scream out, but the all-encompassing eyes of the hyena drowned him out. His silent scream echoed in the abyss of his own mind.

The Hyena

What a glorious body this one is! Compared to our natural form, this one is far superb! And its senses! Almost equal, no, in fact better than equal to our own. His strength is also surprising. And I believed that humans were weak. When the stupid "zookeeper" tried to tap our power before, we resisted, refused to show him how to take our power, let alone give it to him.

This one however…this one is more than worthy, he is almost an animal himself, but restrained by weak emotions of sympathy and compassion. The only loyalty one should ever have is to the Pack, and our pack is strong. With me as Alpha ofcourse.

Through our spirit bond we can hear and know where the others of our pack are at all times…but this one, this…_Xander_…he is different. He can sense them through different means. No matter. Whatever other powers this body may or may not possess, I control it now, effortlessly and easily thanks to the magicks the zookeeper set up. Anything else is meaningless to me.

Hyena hears, no _senses_ the weak human the hosts had been preying on before the Pack took them. The Pack turns and regards him as the prey turns and runs. We are so exhilarated that we do not give chase. Besides, we aren't hungry. I turn and watch him leave, the cave as bright as the plains of home on a hunting night. Brighter almost it seems. I smile as I look forward to the fun I can have in this body. But first, we must learn about our hosts, so as not to be forced back to our lower existence too soon.

Xander

Xander slowly came to, his eyes staying closed until he was fully aware once more, and when they finally did open, he wished that he hadn't. Xander was in something like the Inbetween…but different. Very different. Things also felt familiar, but changed from the way they had been. Finally, he realized that he was somewhere inside of his own mind.

"What the…?" he almost asked himself, but as he got to his feet, he realized the answer before he knew it himself. Something…some_body_ else was in his mind/body, and was currently the one controlling said body.

Xander spun around, trying to get a better look at the place he had woken in. It wasn't that much different from the battleground in Willow's dream world when he had fought the two vamp Willows that had been trying to take over his best friend's mind. Only there were subtle differences.

For one thing, he _knew_ beyond all doubt that this was his mind, as he had then known that the white battlefield had been Willow's dream world. And it wasn't totally pure white, at least not as much as Willow's had been. Here…his was just a tad bit…_darker_. As though there were something covering or casting a shadow on this place. Oh, and then there was the cage.

Unlike the cage the demons had trapped Willow in, which had been invisible except when being hit by a god, Xander could easily and clearly see these bars, and they weren't modeled after a cartoon cage either. In fact it seemed to stem from every possible source of "cages" as inspiration for its construction, save for anything that would overtly obstruct Xander's view to the outside…or the outside viewer's in. From barb wire all around it, in and out, to tiny fence work, to crisscrossed bars like the more common and modern jail cells, not to say anything of movies, but ***actual*** jail cells.

And then there was the fact that the entire construction was translucent as though made from really weird plex-glass, Xander had no clue how to handle any of this. "OK, uh, what the hell is going on here? I mean, I just try and do the right thing, keeping Buff out of trouble while I'm at it, and even do the macho thing in standing up to a bunch of bullies…and the next thing I know, I'm some kind of prisoner in my own mind?" Xander asked himself incredulously.

'_Shows you to know better than to butt into other people's business,'_ a laughing, and darkly ominous, voice from beyond the cage answered Xander's question.

"What the…?" Xander spun about, trying to identify the source.

'_Don't even bother. I'm the one that has taken over your body, remember? For somebody with so much power, you don't know much about how it works, do you?'_ the voice began to laugh at him.

Xander scowled and just looked in general upward and shouted at the voice, "Who are you? What have you done to me? Let me out of here before I break out and believe me, I know I can make you sorry. You have no idea the kind of power I have!" Unlike he would be in "reality", Xander was not bluffing and didn't even sound the slightest bit unsure that he could make good on his threat. Unfortunately, the Hyena knew better.

A cackling and slightly disturbing laughter rang throughout the entire place that was a small corner of Xander's own mind, (known for now as '_Xander's Cage_'), before the voice finally answered back to Xander's challenge. '_You pathetic…_creature!' it laughed some more. '_I am the spirit of the Hyena. A fool of a wizard, unworthy of my power, has allowed me to possess you, and with that magic, you are bound within your own mind, helpless before _my _will. I will admit, you have quite an impressive amount of power, even for this so called race of "gods", which I have never even known of. And I've been around for a while. I've even further bound you up with your own "power" just to keep you more out of my fur than the others of my pack have to deal with.'_

Xander frowned in confusion as he digested all that the Hyena had told him. Because it was the same as the Inbetween, he knew it to be the truth. Even evil spirits possessing him had to follow the rule of no lying here. At least its not a vampire demon, Xander thought gratefully to himself.

"Why?" Xander growled after a few moments silence between him and the Hyena.

Again, that same disturbing laughter. '_Why _not_!'_ It screeched its laughter as its answer. It was then that the torture began.

Xander watched in morbid fascination, through the bars of this cage in his mind, his senses were still transmitting data to him. But it was distanced, more like he was watching a movie of what his body was doing, with full sensory application, from behind the cage. And at the moment, he was watching Lance scramble out of the Hyena house and listening to the others of the Hyena's pack laugh in that same sickening tone that the Hyena laughed at him with. He also felt his body, not of its own volition, smile wickedly at the retreating figure.

Thankfully, Xander could not hear what the Hyena was thinking, nor was he a part of the spirit bond that made them a Pack. However it wasn't long before he noticed the coordination and became aware of the existence of the bond.

Xander couldn't stand a moment more though, and before he actually thought about it, he launched himself at his cage, planning, (if one could call it an actual plan), on the same thing happening when he broke down the demonic cage holding Willow. The opposite happened of course. As soon as he was within a foot of the cage itself, the entire structure lit up so that it looked like it was made from real lightning and then a force that Xander could not identify, struck him and knocked the young god back to the center of the cage.

He had expected some resistance, but nothing like this. His entire body…mental body, ached in ways and places that he never _imagined_ *_could_* exist! His chest, where his body had first encountered the force, was smoking slightly, and a scorch mark was rapidly healing before his eyes. He could barely even move and his "mental" senses were practically useless with a ringing in his ears, spots before his eyes, and his every part hurting like he was dying.

The Hyena, of course, found it all hilarious and didn't stop laughing until long after Xander lost consciousness.

The Hyena

The Hyena walked into the Bronze, full of confidence, a predatory grin on his face, and a look of pure contempt for everyone around him. In short, he walked in like a predator. Nobody even noticed. His host had a reputation for being either invisible or a nice guy. If he wasn't the latter, he was the prior. The Hyena didn't really mind, he had other things he was thinking about.

Like that first scent he caught as he entered.

_Buffy_, the Hyena identified with a possessive growl. The only other being worthy of being his mate, or at least not prey. He would make her his.

At that moment however, another girl, with potential, crossed the Hyena's field of vision. Uncharacteristic of Xander though, the predator that inhabited his body made the girl fully aware that he was checking her out. Through his sense of smell he could instantly tell the girl "appreciated" his time to admire her body.

When he turned around, he suddenly found himself right in front of Buffy and Willow's table. Keeping in mind to keep up the nature of his host, as absolutely beneath it was to him now, the Hyena put on a goofy grin and said in a typical "Xander tone", "Girls!" as greeting.

"Boy!" Buffy said right back with a disappointed look on her face disappearing as he walked around behind her. He purposely ignored both Willow's incessant staring at him, and the trapped voice from within.

'_She was probably thinking about Angel again,'_ the _real_ Xander said from within his cage.

'_Shut up!'_ the Hyena growled at him.

"Sorry I'm late," the Hyena excused, keeping up the act. "I just…forgot that we were gonna be here." At that moment he noticed that his future mate had food in front of her, and his body, and instincts, made him aware of his hunger that had been present for several hours now. "Hungry…" he trailed off as he picked up the food and began to shove it into his mouth. He hadn't yet noticed _what_ he was eating though.

In a desperate attempt to get the boy of her dreams (in more ways than one) to notice her, Willow asked her friend, "Xander, want me to still help you with Geometry tomorrow? We can work after class."

Finally, after swallowing it down with Buffy's coke, the Hyena had noticed what he was eating. '_What the hell? _Birds _live off this stuff!'_

Grimacing as he swallowed the croissant, the Hyena said distractedly, "Yeah," then he pointed down at the half-eaten pastry and added, "What is this crap?"

"Well," Buffy said with a tone of annoyance in her voice, "it _was_ my buttery croissant."

Neither of them noticed the devastated look on Willow's face as Xander ignored her again. Or so it appeared.

"Man, I need some _food_!" the Hyena complained, "Birds live on this!"

Not even the arrogant Hyena could have missed the concerned and confused glances that Buffy and Willow cast each other. He quickly made to correct his error in behavior. "What?" the Hyena asked, trying to act part like prey and part from the memories he had access to from his host.

'_They're gonna figure it out!'_ Xander taunted the Hyena.

"What is up with you?" Buffy asked, sounding concerned and put off at the same time. _Not_ something the Hyena wanted in his future mate.

"Is something wrong? Did I do something?" Willow meekly asked, always the first to blame herself or to help a friend. In that order.

"What could you possibly _do_? That's crazy talk! I'm just…restless," the Hyena excused, when he suddenly caught a far more compelling scent. Combined with everything else in the air, the hormones, the sweat, and the _bodies_. It was almost intoxicating. Even the trapped Xander had to appreciate the euphoria of enhanced senses inside the Bronze.

"Well, we could go to the ice cream place," Willow suggested.

"I like it here," the Hyena said distractedly. His head turned closer to the blonde beside him. Taking deeper breaths, he found he could keep her scent longer than the casual breaths he had been taking so far.

After a couple seconds, Buffy seemed to finally notice that Xander was _sniffing_ her. "OK, now what?" she asked, starting to get a bit angry, but still more concerned.

"You took a bath," the Hyena said, still distracted. In the spirits opinion, in fact in _all_ animals' opinion, things smelled better when they were not washed.

"Yeah, I-I often do," Buffy said, a bit off-balance by her friend's behavior, "I'm actually known for it."

"That's OK," the Hyena forgave. He planned on ridding her of that habit after he claimed her. The spirit easily blocked out his host's cries of outrage.

Willow frowned. She saw everything a lot clearer than Buffy apparently was. Or at least she saw the surface. Buffy glanced at her, but the redhead didn't change her expression. Buffy just took it as a mirror for her own concern rather than the cloud of jealous indignation that it actually was.

"And the weird behavior award goes to…" Buffy sarcastically remarked. Rather than returning the jibe, the Hyena instantly turned towards the door. His Pack had just walked in.

It was an invigorating feeling, having the Pack so close, and his mate right next to him. Well, future-mate, whatever. He would deal with semantics later. The details didn't change the pure elation of confidence and security and _power_ he got from the combined presence of Pack and Slayer in the same space. It was never doubted among the Pack that he would be Alpha. His host was more than powerful enough to guarantee him the position, without any argument from any of the Pack.

It was then that he sensed the conflict within them through the spirit bond. Their hosts were already considered a pack by society, so them hanging out together was never questioned. _His_ host however, was almost always seen at odds with theirs, and he was forced, for the time being, to pretend to still be "Xander Harris" with Xander's friends. Unfortunately, for the possessing spirits, that meant that the Pack and their Alpha were forced to spend more time apart than was accustomed. When the Pack stopped before Buffy and Willow's table, the Hyena just stared neutrally back into their faces.

Through the spirit bond however, a wealth of communication was going on. Kyle, the second in the Pack, wanted to lead, the undercurrent of jealousy and desire of power coursing through the link like an underground river, but Kyle's mate, Rhonda, had no problem with the current setting of power within the Pack and was trying to calm him, physically their hands holding. The other two were just waiting for a decision to be made and a command from the Alpha.

_Go. Stay near by, but go. We cannot afford risking detection just yet. These have ways of finding ways to reverse the spell. Go. I'll take care of the Slayer. _The Hyena commanded. They quickly moved on after that.

The Hyena, and subsequently Buffy and Willow, watched them go for a moment. Kyle, in the absence of the Alpha, took lead of the Pack and quickly circled for "some fun", and he didn't have to look for long.

Like the well-organized killing machine they were, the Pack circled around a group not too far away, Kyle stalking right up to the "center" of the group. Leaning down over the guy sitting there, Kyle said, only mildly masking the threat, "I don't understand why your sitting at our table."

"Yeah, shouldn't you be hovering over the football stadium with 'Goodyear' written on you?" Rhonda teased/insulted. Immediately the entire Pack started laughing almost hysterically, Hyena-Xander included.

The Hyena turned back around, now confident of his Pack and finally saw the mostly concerned, but partially wigged looks Buffy and Willow were giving him.

'_It wasn't that funny,'_ Xander thought to the Hyena, '_And in case you forgot, I DON'T PICK ON PEOPLE! They're going to find out!'_

"Kid's fat," the Hyena explained, rationalizing that "Xander" often found things being funny where others were lost. '_Oh that's great, now he's using my own sense of humor against me!'_ Xander fumed.

Buffy and Willow just shared more concerned glances with one another and then apparently decided that it wasn't worth arguing over, or at least that Xander was entitled to one night of non-interrogation weirdness, and went back to enjoying the teen atmosphere. The Hyena finally relaxed, enough to more easily fit the "role" of Xander, having dodged the bullet.

For now, the real Xander reminded it. For now.

_To Be Continued..._


	59. Animorphs: The Game Tutorial

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Animoprhs, K.A. Applegate is the original author, Scholastic is the owner. I heard recently that they're re-releasing the series. It's actually a fun little scifi-adventure series, although admittedly the books are designed for teens and pre-teens, it's still an awesome story overall. Check it out if you ever can. Oh, and I've seen at least three other stories like this, so I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon, see how I fair._

Premise:

"Boy, I thought he'd never stop talking."

I heard the voice somewhere behind me but I couldn't react or turn around or do anything about it. I was dead. Strange how I was still somehow aware and was hearing voices while being dead, but Cassie always cared more about the existentialistic stuff. I wonder if she and Jake will still get together now that I'm dead.

"You know, it's rude to ignore people," the voice said. It was a man's voice. Young, probably no more than twenty if that. Didn't recognize it though. Wonder when I'm finally going to get to move on here?

"Hello? McFly, anybody home?"

"Shut up, I'm dead, leave me alone," I growled at the voice.

Wait a second...

I snapped my eyes opened and looked around. I wasn't in the non-space seeing the life and times of the extra-dimensional being known as the Ellimist. No, instead I was in the Mall Food Court. The entire place was empty save for myself and the guy talking to me. I spun around and was surprised to see Tom Welling standing there in his Clark Kent costume from Smallville. He smiled and shrugged at me.

"I beg to differ," he replied.

"Who... What's going on here?" I started to ask but ended up growling angrily, putting my hands on my hips, ready to morph at a moment's notice. Silently I wondered if I even could still morph, being dead and all.

"You're not dead, I'm not Crayak, or the Ellimist, or a Controller," he told me, putting his hands back in his jeans pockets.

"You're definitely not human. Chee?" I tried to narrow the list, half-hoping the situation wasn't as bad as it appeared, but experience had taught me better by now.

"We'll come back to that in a bit," he moved and pulled out a chair from the table between us. Looking around, I suddenly noticed it was the only table and the only two chairs in the entire place, which normally was filled with tables, booths, chairs and garbage cans. "Please?" he gestured for me to sit.

Hesitantly, and not wanting to push my luck than I already had today, I sat and asked him, "What is this place? What are _you_?"

"Think of this place as what is inbetween. Between life and death. Between the layers of reality. Between normal space and Zero Space. Between one moment and the next. Between a possible decision and making the choice. As for me... I'm complicated. For now, you can call me... Jim. Yeah, Jim, that'll work."

"OK, _Jim_, why do you look like Tom Welling from Smallville instead of Captain Kirk from the Original Star Trek, huh?" I snapped at him.

He just shrugged and smiled again. I ignored the heat coming to my cheeks and focused on glowering at him.

"The Ellimist has his form, Crayak and his minion have theirs, I have mine. I can change if you'd like." He then changed to Bruce Campbell, looking as young as he did in Army of Darkness, but dressed like Autolycus, King of Thieves.

"Funny," I growled, arms crossed now.

He grinned one more time and changed back to Tom Welling.

"What did you mean about a choice? A choice on whether to die or not?" I tried to move things along.

"Not precisely," Jim answered. "That was purely metaphor. In actuality, I really did save your life, where neither the Ellimist nor Crayak did, and before you say anything, you're not indebted to me or relying on my power for continued life. You are alive, stolen from time the instant before the polar bear would have killed you and replaced with a perfect duplicate, save that the duplicate was never alive in the first place. The Ellimist sort of tugged on your consciousness and you've just been kind of standing here with your eyes closed for a good hour now. I didn't bother interrupting, but when the life force of the duplicate ran out, I cut off your side of the connection, making it look for all the world that you died."

I didn't know what to say to that for a minute, and just sat there, digesting what I'd been told. Finally I asked the question that had been hanging in the room since I'd opened my eyes.

"Why?"

Jim sighed and sat back in his chair. Suddenly there was a TV, like what you might see in Video Game stores, hanging from the ceiling right beside our table. There was an advertisement playing. It looked familiar, but I was sure I'd never seen it before. And then I saw an Andalite appear on the screen. And not just any Andalite, it was Ax! Right beside him was a wolf, a tiger and a gorilla, charging through the forest. Tobias cut across the screen and suddenly the shot changed to a familiar scene. The last view that I had seen of my home town as the Poolship descended and fought our army. Then graphics showed up and I realized what the advertisement was really all about. All of a sudden it ended and it showed the packaging of a video game. The really surprising part was that my picture was on the front cover, spliced together with my Grizzly Bear morph. The title of the game was simply "Animorphs: The Game".

"You have two options right in front of you, Rachel," said Jim, "As well as the ever present third option 'None Of The Above', or NOTA as I think of it."

"You turned our lives into a videogame?" I screamed at him, pointing at the TV, only to have it disappear the moment I did so.

"Just the opposite in fact," he smirked, reminding me of Marco at his most obnoxious. "If I hadn't intervened, you _would_ be dead. And if I don't intervene further down the line, all of your friends will die as well. In fact, out of all of you, only one of your group dies _after_ she turned thirty. The others all before they'd turned twenty-five. So I'm presenting you all with an opportunity to change that. But it's too boring and no fun just to send you back to live through it all again. So, if you accept my offer, things will be different. Very different."

"I've heard this before," I growled, about to get up and storm away.

"From Crayak and his minion. I am aware. Jake's been given opportunities like this as well. It never turned out well and he always wound up changing things back the way they were before. This is different. Very different. Thus, I present your options." On the table in front of us text appeared, like what you would see in a video game, usually with a count-down clock but thankfully that wasn't there this time.

WILL YOU ACCEPT GM'S OFFER?

-YES- -NO-

"G M?" I read, then rolled it on my tongue a bit and glared at him anew, "G.M.? Jim? Really?"

"Wouldst thou prefer that I don myself such as this?" he'd suddenly changed to a cartoon character from the eighties. Specifically Dungeon Master from the old cartoon "Dungeons & Dragons".

"Uh, no, and wouldn't that be D.M.? Dim?"

"I prefer Game Master," the small and bald cartoon was quickly changed to a different cartoon character from the nineties instead, before shifting back to Tom Welling, this time wearing a Smallville High Letterman Jacket. "Hence Jim."

"What's the offer?" I sighed, wanting to get this over with.

"Well, to find that out, you have to select yes first of all."

"That's not fair!" I cried out.

"Now hold on a second, let me finish," he held up his hands to calm me down. "If you choose no, then my hands become tied and I return you to the time stream from where I got you. And then you always have your third option of NOTA."

"Which would leave me here with you in an empty mall and nothing to do, yeah, no thanks," I grumbled. I hit the -Yes- before he could say another word and then demanded, "Now what's this offer?"

"You're very impulsive, you know that right?" he laughed.

He turned in his chair and the TV was back. It was paused on the final screen of the advertisement. "Here's the deal. I'm giving the Animporhs a second chance. Actually a lot more than just a second chance. More like I'm giving you nigh-infinite chances here. Let me give you a preview of what happened after you died."

The TV then came to life and I felt like I was watching a TV, told largely from Jake's point of view, from the moment they saw the polar bear kill me over the communicator and the Blade Ship disappear into space, to the negotiations between the Animorphs, Andalites, and Yeerks. There was sort of a montage of scenes showing the major events, how humanity and the Earth changed in the aftermath of the Yeerk Invasion and the start of a new alliance, straight from Star Trek almost. Visser One being put on trial in Geneva. Jake teaching Army Recruits in how to use morphing technology in combat situations at West Point. Marco moving to Hollywood. And the real surprises of Cassie marrying some other guy and Tobias living life as a normal hawk, leaving civilization entirely.

Then it came to the part about Ax.

The final scene was of Jake ordering a head-on collision of the BEST NAMED SHIP EVER with the Blade Ship, destroying the last of the Yeerks as well as killing themselves to save the universe from a much larger threat than the Yeerks ever had been.

"That... is _so_ not fair!" I cried, unable to believe my eyes.

Jim shrugged and the screen changed back to the paused advertisement.

"The war starts less than a year after that event, and thanks to the warning their actions provided, Humanity, Andalites, and every other race in the Alliance were able to prepare and were not caught off-guard when the Unifiers invade. That's what everybody calls them, as they merely claim they are part of the One. Cassie rejoins the military and dies on a covert mission to locate the One's homeworld. They succeed by the way, and Cassie's sacrifice makes the difference, keeping things at a status quo of escalating violence instead of the Unifiers winning outright. _That_ is what this is all about."

"So... you're like the Ellimist, and this... One is like Crayak?" I tried to understand.

He shrugged and replied, "Not exactly, but as far as my relationship with the One, it works for now. Suffice it to say, I'm on the side of humans and free-thinking sentient creatures everywhere. Unlike the Ellimist however, I play a very different sort of game."

"Let me guess," I interrupted, "Video games?"

"MMORPGs specifically," Jim grinned at me again.

"Yeah, and for those of use that aren't morons named Marco?"

"A video game more like World of Warcraft or DragonQuest with a little bit of Ninja Gaiden thrown in, rather than games like MYST, Street Fighter, or Mario Brothers," he answered. "My offer, which you have already accepted on behalf of all the Animorphs, is that from the moment in that construction yard when you five first became the Animorphs to some yet-to-be-determined time in the future when you come to an ending that satisfies all parties, your adventures become very similar to your standard MMORPG video game. Instead of up close and personal horror movies."

"You mean we get to sit back and play with avatars and stuff like that in an arcade?" Boy I was really channelling the snark today.

"I'll give you an example," he said and then suddenly everything changed.

-WELCOME TO THE TUTORIAL-

"Welcome to the Tutorial," Jim's voice echoed in the suddenly empty space. I wasn't in the mall anymore. In fact, it looked like an emptied, and expanded, copy of Cassie's barn.

"I can read," I sarcastically retorted, doing my best to hide the fear that was tingling in my spine at this. The last time I'd been in a situation like this, it hadn't ended well.

"Don't worry, you're not being granted any extra power or tempted with something to turn you into a monster or anything like that. You already accepted my offer. This is just a demonstration of what you've agreed to. Be sure to read everything, you don't want to miss something in the fine print. Could be important."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the sarcasm thankfully masked the relief in my voice at hearing his reassurances. "Let's just get this started, all right?"

"OK, I'll give you the first little hint," I could hear the amusement in Jim's voice. It grated on my nerves for some reason. "Say 'Pause' and then go through everything in the menu that comes up. Have any more questions, just say my name, I'll be there."

I stuck my tongue out at the empty room, saying nothing.

"Cute, but no tongue on the first date. We just met after all."

I blushed and barely managed to restrain myself from morphing and going on a rampage. Instead, I just growled out, "Pause!"

Everything went still, and I think even I went still. Nothing was moving, not that there was a lot to move around here, but it felt like even the air had stopped moving.._Time_ had stopped moving. Everything turned shades of gray, except for me. And I was the only thing still moving. Until Glowing letters appeared in front of me and opened up to, like Jim said, a menu.

It was exactly like what I had seen before on just about every video game I'd ever played or seen played. The word -PAUSE- was at the top, and below that was a simple black and white script menu. From what I saw it was pretty much what you would expect to see on a Pause Menu in a video game; Resume, Quit, Options, Help. There were, however, two extra selections that were not typical, at least in my experience of such things. Those were -CHEATs- and -ANIBASE- and stood out simply because where the other four selections were in bright white, these two were dark gray. I think the term was 'grayed out'. Frowning, I hit -RESUME- and then asked, "And the point of that would be?"

"Say Pause again, and then choose help and _read_ it," Jim's voice insisted. "It explains everything and tell you what, if you want to just go ahead and go back without any explanation and have to figure out everything on your own with no clue as to how to work the game and go back with your friends to the beginning, fighting the Yeerks with no clue about how to go about things and no explanation to give them, just hit Quit, and you'll immediately be back in that construction yard on that night. The Game starts the moment you quite the Tutorial. Are you prepared for that?"

Grumbling, I paused and read through the Help and the Options and then started the actual Tutorial. It was actually pretty fun. And then, after Jim insisted that I was done and had unlocked the Anibase and the Cheat options, I hit the Quit button and that's when everything started.

End Premise.


	60. Animorphs: The Game New Game

Animorphs: "The Game"

My name is Jake. The last thing I remember is ordering the _Rachel_, the ship me and my friends had stolen to go and find another friend, on a collision course with the Blade Ship, which had been missing for years, and seems to have been taken over by a new alien threat, calling itself "The One". That's not entirely accurate, by the way. The last thing I really remember is the collision, feeling the impact, and then being blasted back and down onto the deck by an explosion from the front of the ship. I remember seeing Tobias being lit on fire and then laying still. I remember seeing Marco's arm reaching out to me, only to disappear beneath flames and the bulkhead. And then I saw a shard of the Blade Ship, which was also exploding, coming straight at me, I felt something sharp and hot and then overwhelming cold, and then it all went black.

Not sure what I had expected when I died, but it wasn't this.

-GAME OVER-

Everything was still black, and while there was a chill in the air, I wasn't feeling particularly cold anymore. Not hot either. Just sort of room temperature. Oh, and there was the big glowing letters directly above and in front of me, saying "Game Over" and below that, a flashing icon saying "Continue? -Yes- or -No-".

I'm not exactly sure how long I just stood there staring at it. Come to think of it, I'm not sure when I even realized that I was standing and not laying on my back somewhere. Finally, daring to hope, I reached out and put my hand on the -Yes- and frankly was surprised when it lit up and everything changed.

Rather upbeat music, with ominous undertones started playing all around me, and the black... everything changed to outer space, stars and the Earth hung before me instead of that game over message. Correction, I blinked, now there was a logo, straight out of a video game, that said;

-Animoprhs-

-The Game-

Framed by the Earth, below the logo, were several options that made me start thinking I was going crazy. But then again, I'm supposed to be dead, so maybe Heaven turned life into one big video game. Who knew? Marco would definitely get a real kick out of it, that's for sure.

The options were exactly what you would expect; -New Game-, -Load Game-, -Options-, -Help-, and -Exit-

Just out of curiosity, I reached forward and tapped my finger on the load game selection. A buzzer sounded and everything shadowed out and was covered by -ERROR: No Data Saved!- before it eventually reverted back to the main screen. Well, that was just typical, make it all the way to the end of the game, and it turns out you forgot to save and now have to start all over again.

Experience with at least a few beings that were actually capable of putting me in an illusion, or even a whole new reality like this made me wary and so I chose the -Help- selection next.

A few moments of vertigo later, and suddenly I was a lot closer to the Earth, and saw a sight for sore eyes. It was an Andalite Domeship! It was real enough that I felt like I could reach out and touch it... after moving through space about two or three miles that is. And then the videogame was overlated on top of it so that the help options seemed to appear inside of the dome, which even now I could see contained living, breathing, and moving Andalites. It has occured to me that this might very well be _the_ Andalite Domeship that started it all for me and my friends, the one that has Ax and even Elfangor on it right now. Pushing past my anger at this extremely cruel joke, I read through the help topics. Next to each selection was a brief description of what it was about.

-AniDictionary-

[Provides layman's term definitions to unique vocabulary and characters found within the came. Long Term Quest: Discover and complete all AniDictionary Entries: [**0**] Entries Found]

-AniBase-

[Interactive feature that allows players and characters to keep track of items, Game Mods, Quests, and even Key Items. Similar to a Utility feature. Accessible from the Pause Menu]

-Badges and Achievments-

[Lists Badges and Achievments obtained in the game]

-Unlocked Features-

[Displays Unlocked Features, Characters, Items, Game Mods, etc]

**THERE ARE CURRENTLY NO UNLOCKED FEATURES**

-AniBonus-

[Find a Bonus in the game, find out what it is and what it does here]

I stared and resisted the urge to growl in frustration. From my own experience with video games, I recognized that none of this would actually give me any real help. I exited out back to the main screen, and after the vertigo passed, I selected -Option- and succumbed to yet another view change, only this put the Earth behind me as I faced open space. Or rather, I faced the space battle between the Yeerks and the Andalites, with the Blade Ship and the Poolship on one side, and the Domeship on the other. Right in the middle I had three options, while witnessing Bug Fighters and Andalite Scouters blow each other out of the sky with red and blue Dracon and Shredder beams; -Difficulty-, -Control Settings-, and -AniMusic-.

That last option was rather surprising in and of itself, so I went ahead and opened it and then immediately muted the Music option as that was seriously getting on my nerves, though I left Sound FX on, and noticed that all the song options were Locked. Same with the Difficulty, as it was defaulted to _Aristh_, with the locked levels being _Warrior_, _Prince_, and _War-Prince_. Mostly just to see what would happen, I tried to tap on the _Prince_ level. The buzzer sounded and then writing appeared next to each level.

-_Aristh_-

[Default Level. No interference from external forces permitted. Standard events and standard enemies. All Bonuses and Unlocked Game Mods are available at all times. The same as what happened before, in other words.]

-_Warrior_ **LOCKED**-

[Expert Level. No interference from external forces permitted. Special Events and Special Challenge Areas are automatically unlocked for this level. Unlocked Game Mods are available at all times, while Bonuses are now equipped with either a Time Limit, or a Use Limit. To unlock _Warrior _Mode, you must defeat the Yeerk Invasion in _Aristh_ Mode without losing any of your characters.]

-_Prince_ **LOCKED**-

[Advanced Level. No interference from external forces permitted. Special Events, Special Challenge Areas, Roaming Bosses, and Long Term Quests are automatically unlocked for this level. Game Mods are pre-chosen and switched to Use Limit, based on previoue Power Tiers, while Bonuses are still equipped with either a Time Limit, or a Use Limit. To unlock _Prince_ Mode, you must complete all Special Challenge Areas, and defeat Yeerk Invasion in _Warrior_ Mode without losing any of your characters.]

-_War-Prince_ **LOCKED**-

[Hard Level. Interference by external forces is now possible. Special Event and Special Challenge Bosses and enemies are now the standard. Roaming Bosses, Hunter Enemies, and PvP are all made standard. Game Mods must be located and reacquired and then both Power and Use Tiers must be leveled up once more. To unlock _War-Prince_ Mode, you must complete [10] Long Term Quests and complete the _Aristh_ and _Warrior _Modes without losing any characters.]

Well... OK, that's ominous. Apparently the hell that me and my friends just suffered through for the past few years is considered _EASY_? Yeah, I don't think I'm going to especially try to unlock any of those other game modes. Though I do have to ask what 'interference' it's referring to. I backed out of that menu and went to the control settings. Only two options; -Verbal- or -Thought Speak-. It was defaulted to Verbal. Knowing better by now that silent was often better, I changed it to Thought Speak and went back to the Main Menu. Really starting to hate this back and forth through space.

I briefly, very briefly, considered going back to the Help menu and going through all the rest of it, but enough is enough as they say. I very angrily punched the -Exit- and waited for whatever happened next. Except... nothing happened.

I turned around and even walked away from the menu, only to find that the view shifted with my stance. Looking down, I could see nothing but more stars, but it felt like I was standing on a tiled floor. I was even dressed... whoa, I was dressed the same as the night we became the Animorphs. Next, I tried running straight through the menu and maybe reach the Earth, or the wall of this place, whichever happened first. The menu and vista of the Earth never shifted once. I could turn my head, and the menu would remain stationary, but if I turned or moved my body in any way, it moved with me. I hit the exit selection a bunch more times.

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" I screamed into empty space, hearing my voice but not hearing any echo. "I'm done! We're done! Ellimist! Crayak! Whoever or _What_Ever! Do you hear me? WE ARE DONE!"

Nothing.

"Fine," I growled and slapped the selection for -New Game-.

***Chapter 1 END***


	61. Animorphs: The Game Level 1

-"The Invasion"-

The bold white letters appeared where the menu had been, as the same music that had been playing started up again, this time as more of a real song than a continuing melody. My view suddenly shifted abruptly, but not like before. It was pretty clear that I entering the Earth's atmosphere, and pretty fast too. Looking behind me, I almost wasn't surprised to see Elfangor in an Andalite Scouter right there over my shoulder. Soon enough, the Western coast of the North American continent became obvious, and the lights of the cities beneath coming closer by the second.

Aside from this rather interesting view of re-entry from the outside of a spaceship, there was also further evidence of the Game still being at work. Not text, as before. No, it was actually a bit worse than that. It was my own voice, reciting back to me words that I never thought would see the light of day.

"My name is Jake," the voice over said, not even having to shout to be heard over the noise of the atmosphere and the space ship behind me. "That's my first name, obviously. I can't tell you my last name. It would be too dangerous. The Controllers are everywhere. Everywhere. And if they knew my full name, they could find me and my friends, and then . . . well, let's just say I don't want them to find

me. What they do to people who resist them is too horrible to think about."

"I won't even tell you where I live. You'll just have to trust me that it is a real place, a real town. It may even be your town." Suddenly, my view started to shift. The ground was approaching much, much faster than before, and I could no longer hear Elfangor's ship behind me. Almost before I knew it, I suddenly found myself in the mall... playing a video game beside Marco, and unable to control my body. My voice was still sounding in my ear, but I tuned it out as it described the scene I was living out.

Years after the fact, I had completely forgotten things about that night... _this _night. For example, what game me and Marco had been playing at the mall, and how much he had trounced me at it. It was Street Fighter Alpha, by the way. We ran into Tobias on the way out of the mall after meeting up with Rachel and Cassie, exactly as I had remembered. God, were we ever this young? This innocent?

Walking along to the Construction Site, I noticed that the voice over had stopped playing a while back. And more than that, I was moving myself now, not being controlled by the game. Still, I went through the motions and made sure to take us straight to the Construction Site. Learned that lesson the hard way. Once in there, though, I slowed our pace and waited for Tobias to notice his father's ship coming down.

"What's that?" Tobias asked.

I smiled, and didn't recall until after the moment had passed that I was supposed to say something here. Instead, I just looked up and watched as Elfangor's ship made it's way to us. Cassie was the one to say, "It's a UFO!"

Rachel and Marco, both of course denied the claim and looked up themselves to disprove it. A minute later, as the mostly-blue fighter craft came in for a landing right in front of us, they were still silent with their mouths hanging open in shock. The door opened, same as before, and out stepped Prince Elfangor. Blue fur, four eyes, two of them on eye-stalks, no mouth, deer body for the lower half, too many fingers on his thin arms, and the scorpion-like bladed tail held up in the back.

"Prince Elfangor," I bowed my head once. I could feel the stares of my friends behind me. "How much time do we have before Visser Three arrives?"

Elfangor stared at me, surprise evident in his eyes, but then he smiled in that way that only Andalites could do without a mouth and nodded his head. (You have already found the Time Matrix then? You were expecting me?)

"Something like that... I hope," I frowned, briefly berating myself at the change to the timeline. Not that it's going to change much. "I'll get the Morphing Cube, you rest. You're going to need your strength."

"Jake! What the hell is this?" Marco shouted suddenly.

"You explain," I said to Elfangor, walking past him into the Scouter, "I've heard it before and... it was bad enough the first time."

[I understand.] said Elfangor, [I will explain quickly. Please make sure _he_ does not get the Time Matrix.]

"He never will," I assured him and stepped inside the craft. I heard Cassie and Marco scream for me not to go, but I was too distracted to bother reassuring them.

Mostly because the game seemed to have taken over again, but not like before. Before, it was just some weird visual effects and a temporary loss of control of my body. Now, suddenly, the world seemed to pause itself and a whole different set of visual effects came to the fore. Aside from the Morphing Cube, five other items suddenly lit up and had glowing names over them. Unsure what to make of this, I went ahead and made to grab the Morphing Cube. Suddenly, it's name expanded out and a text menu appeared right in my face, I jumped back and if not for the fact that it was apparently impossible at the moment, I would have morphed to either attack or get away by now. Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself and read the text.

-MORPHING CUBE-

"_The Morphing Cube grants anyone who touches it's sides the power to morph._"

(**Due to time constraints from the Yeerks coming, Player has limited number of items that can be retrieved. Of the 6 available items you must choose [3]**)

-Would you like to choose the Morphing Cube?-

-YES- or -NO-

I briefly considered and looked around at the other items, before quickly hitting the Yes. The Morphing Cube was suddenly in my hand, and a new screen was suddenly in my face before it disappeared a second later; -**Due to time constraints from the Yeerks coming, Player has limited number of items that can be retrieved. Of the 6 available items you must choose [2]**-

"So, I can grab more than just the Morphing Cube this time? I'm starting to like this game!" I said to myself.

Going around, I tapped the names of all the other glowing items, just to see what my options were, hitting -No- each time until I'd been through them all.

-SHREDDER-

"_Standard Andalite energy weapon. Currently has six shots remaining. Giving this to Elfangor may affect his fight with Visser Three._"

-ANDALITE DISC-

"_Highly Advanced Andalite technology. This was meant to be a gift from Elfangor to Tobias, to help him in the fight against the Yeerks. Its powers are unknown and a long term quest of discovering what those powers are and in keeping it from the Yeerks is a consequence of choosing this item. It may affect how future events play out._"

-SELF DESTRUCT SWITCH-

"_In his hurry to get everything he could, Jake accidently slams against this panel and triggers the ship's self-destruct, which will take out the entire Construction Site and everything in it. It may affect how future events play out._"

-DNA: BATTLE-

"_Andalites rarely acquire their morphs from animals directly, instead probes gather the DNA and then the DNA is loaded into these capsules. These capsules contain DNA of animals that match with Battle Morphs. Once Morphing powers are acquired, holding one capsule in the hand will be the same as acquiring it from a living animal._"

-DNA: ESCAPE-

"_Andalites rarely acquire their morphs from animals directly, instead probes gather the DNA and then the DNA is loaded into these capsules. These capsules contain DNA of animals that may assist in escaping the Construction Site before the Yeerks arrive. Once Morphing powers are acquired, holding one capsule in the hand will be the same as acquiring it from a living animal._"

The warning about future events caught my eye more than anything else, and if my future knowledge was going to be useful at all, I would rather that everything else play out the same as before. I only had two choices left, and I had figured out that the others hadn't come back with me, judging by their reactions, both to Elfangor and to my own actions. Battle morphs, therefore, would do us no good as none of them were quite... ready for it. I chose the Escape DNA. Which then left me with the two options that may affect how future events play out, the other DNA capsule, and the Shredder. With that last one, there was no warning about future events, just how the fight between Elfangor and Visser Three would turn out. So maybe not the end result, just how much more effective Elfangor can face him in his final moments?

I smiled and chose the Shredder, rather enjoying the thought of Elfangor giving that monster a few scars. Perhaps even more if he managed to shoot the Yeerk between the eyes.

Suddenly, my arms full with the Cube, an Andalite capsule, and a ray gun, the world unfroze and I was running out of the ship and handing all of it to Elfangor.

He smiled again. And then instructed the others in what to do while I already held my hand in place. A few moments later, a chime and a horn sounded and suddenly we were all surrounded by blue lines of light, special effects that had _not_ been part of the original event, and in stylized writing above the cube, I read; -Morphing Powers Acquired! You may now morph into any living creature that you have acquired! To acquire DNA, merely hold the source DNA to your skin and focus on the creature! Maximum Morph Time is currently set to Default 2:00:00-

OK, I thought to myself as the effects all disappeared, that was different.

[Here,] Elfangor broke open the capsule and handed us each one sphere, [Close your hand around it and focus on it. An image will appear in your minds. Once you have acquired the DNA, focus on that image and you will morph into that creature. Please, hurry.]

"Definitely different," I muttered to myself and did as instructed. I acquired the DNA and was surprised yet again when the same chime and horn sounded. Opening my eyes, I read, -DNA Acquired! You can now morph into a _Greyhound dog_!-

None of the others got any signs above their heads, so I wasn't quite sure what else they got, but most of them were sort of just standing there, staring, still overwhelmed by events. I sighed and made a decision, not even noticing that the sphere had disappeared in my hand after acquiring the DNA.

"Guys," I said, getting their attention, "We don't have a lot of time, so let me explain while I can."

"Yes, that would be good, and by the way, how do you even know about this stuff already?" Marco shouted at me.

"Because I've lived through it before," was my simple answer. At their disbelieving looks, I explained, "Don't ask me how, because I really don't know, but somehow, I've been sent back in time. Roughly five to six years. And if we don't do this, if we don't fight the Yeerks, humanity is going to be enslaved in less than two years. And... my brother, Tom, is already one of them."

"How do we know you're not?" Marco snapped suspiciously.

I turned to Elfangor and held out my hand. He nodded once and then extended his own and we shook. I smiled easily, though perhaps my sadness at what was to come shone through a bit. I turned back to the others and told them, "Every Yeerk alive absolutely hates the Andalites, without exception. It's ingrained into their nature by at least two generations of war. A Yeerk could not stand being this close to an Andalite without trying to kill him first. The rage and hate would show through whatever facade they have in place."

[You are out of time.] Elfangor informed us, his eye stalks aimed straight up and focused on the approaching Blade Ship and Bug Fighters.

"Let's morph guys," I ordered, already starting to morph myself. "We... don't need to see this again. I'm sorry, Prince Elfangor."

[Go. Thank you for all that you have done. And... I'm sorry for what you must do.] He watched us go from where he lay on the ground as we morphed and ran for the debris all around us. I was already more than halfway gone, and I expected to be fighting with my clothes, but was surprised to find all my clothes, _all_ of them, morphing into the short fur of my new greyhound dog body.

"Whoa!" Tobias shouted.

"Ahhh!" Rachel screamed.

"What the-!" Marco exclaimed.

"Jake...?" Cassie whispered, fear in her eyes.

[Come on and morph guys,] I told them in Thought Speak. [We don't have time. Visser Three will be here soon. Concentrate on that image, like Elfangor told you. Focus everything you have on it. And then follow me. We have to get home.]

Cassie was the first to change, followed by Tobias. Cassie into a squirrel, Tobias into a rabbit. Marco and Rachel shared a look, both staring wide-eyed at the three animals now in front of them. And then the Bug Fighters shone those horrible red lights. We were out of time.

[NOW! MORPH NOW!] I ordered.

Almost like that was a keyword or something, both my cousin and my best friend began to change. Rachel morphed into a brown rat. Marco morphed into a ferret.

[Wow!] Tobias exclaimed. He started to bound off, but I stopped him and the others from going too far.

[Quiet!] I whispered in Thought Speak, communicating only with them. [Don't say or think anything. We can't let the Yeerks know we're here. Come on. Follow me.]

It wasn't until we were nearly out of the Construction Site that my acute canine hearing picked up the sounds of energy beams discharging and the roar of whatever nightmare creature Visser Three had changed into crying out in pain. The others nearly stopped and gave in to their animal instincts, but a soft growl from me had them frozen in place long enough for their human minds to reassert themselves. Once we were in the field, with no light nearby, not even moonlight, in the darkness I stopped the others and we morphed back to human. As I resumed my natural state, I finally took notice of a... a ring around my vision that only went away when I started to morph back. It had started off as sort of a pure white ring at the edges of my vision, and if I had focused on it, I'm sure I would have seen something like a clock without numbers. As time passed in morph, starting at the top and moving clockwise, a tiny portion had started to change to red.

Of course it wasn't until I was human again that I realized what that meant.

The game had given me a Morph Clock.

In the darkness, as Cassie and Rachel cried, and Marco panicked, and Tobias was oddly quiet, I found a small measure of hope.

***Chapter 2 END***


	62. Animorphs: The Game First Challenge

AN: "Speech", _'Private Thoughts'_, [Thought Speak because 's HTML won't allow for the original brackets that had always been in the books before!]

The next morning, I woke up and had a whole new deja vu experience, because Tobias was walking into my room mere minutes after I woke up with my dog on hand. In addition to the rabbit from last night, he'd morphed his pet cat and discovered the limitations of Thought Speak. After acquiring Homer, rather than practice morphing, I told Tobias to follow me, left a note for my parents, and then rode my bike all the way out to Cassie's place, letting Tobias borrow Tom's bike, and picking Marco up on the way. Once out there, as expected, we found Rachel and Cassie already there, and Cassie enjoying a run as a horse.

"This is insane, you all realize this, of course," Marco shouted at all of us when we were all human and sitting on lofts of hay in Cassie's barn.

I smiled fondly, feeling like an old man reliving childhood memories. And in a way, I kind of was.

"In more ways than you can know, buddy," I said.

"All right, _Fearless Leader_," Marco poked me, hard, in the chest, "You say you've lived through this already? What am I going to say next then?"

I smiled and laughed. "This isn't the rain forest mission where I went back in time twenty-four hours and am having flashes of what's happening in both places. Besides, first time around, we were all still too traumatized to believe it, only me, Cassie and Tobias had morphed, and we were talking about whether to believe it or not. Oh, and you coined the name _Animorph_, and that's what we're called now."

"Oh sure," Marco snorted a laugh, "Blame me for the corny sounding name."

I shrugged. "Now, instead, I'm going to tell you guys what is going on, and we're going to strike at the Yeerk Pool tomorrow night during the Sharing's beach event, instead of in a week."

"Whoa, whoa," Rachel waved her arms, "The Sharing? What does that have to do with anything?"

"The Sharing is a front for the Yeerks. Not every one of them, but all of the higher members are Human-Controllers. A lot, unfortunately, are also collaborators. They volunteer to be infested with Yeerks, and help with the invasion. Traitors, in short. Tom, thankfully, isn't one of those, but he is a Controller."

"How is this even possible?" Cassie asked.

I shrugged again, "In about six to seven months, we come across a being that calls himself the Ellimist. Never figured out exactly what he was, but he's some kind of extra-dimensional creature with powers that can bend and warp reality and time itself. Once, as an introduction almost, he took us, from in-morph, to the future for about fifteen minutes and then returned us to our original bodies, still in-morph, all just to give us a tiny clue that helped us in the fight against the Yeerks. Wasn't the last time he showed up either. He _could_ do something like this, but... it's not his style."

"So, you're saying that you've come across some _thing _with godlike powers, and you don't think it's his _style_ to send you back in time to fight in a war between mind controlling alien slugs, and four-eyed blue centaur scorpion mixed aliens? Am I the only one who doesn't think this is totally and absolutely _insane_?" Marco screamed, throwing his arms up in the air.

"It is insane," I said as seriously as I could. They all stopped and stared at me. Rachel actually shivered.

"What's more insane is that this afternoon, we're going to the Gardens, I'm going to sneak into the tiger exhibit, Marco is going to the gorilla cages, and Cassie is taking Rachel to the African Elephants, and Tobias is going to acquire that Red-Tailed Hawk over there," I pointed at the injured animal off to the side. "And Cassie, if your parents have any wolves on hand, please acquire the female. Yeah, and while I'm thinking of it, we should all acquire wolf morphs. Very useful. Oh, and is the Peregrine Falcon still here?"

"And who put you in charge all of a sudden?" Rachel snapped at me.

I looked at them, smiled and felt like leaping about with joy. "Would one of you care to be in charge? I'm serious, say the word, and I'll do whatever you want. Marco may joke about it, but I'd rather be anything _but_ the Fearless Leader of the Animorphs." They were all quiet, staring at me with wide, unblinking eyes, "Come on, Rachel, I once even left you in charge, and you didn't do too bad at all. What do you say? And Tobias, you're a lot tougher than you look, and you could... I'm stuck being the leader, aren't I?"

They all hastily nodded their heads. I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "Cassie?"

"Yes Jake?" she started.

"Wolves?" I reminded her.

"Uh, not yet, I don't think," she shrugged. "But all our injured birds of prey are over here," she lead the way. I found the falcon and quickly acquired it's DNA. The same special effects, blue streamers of light flowed around me and the notification -DNA Acquired! You can now morph into a _Peregrine Falcon_!-. The others all acquired the same forms as before, Marco and Cassie the same Osprey in fact. I did not see any special effects around them, and they didn't say anything about it. Looked like I was still on my own in the game.

"Now, let's get to the Gardens, and then we can start planning on how to blow up the Yeerk Pool. And Cassie, get something powerful for yourself. I may get my Rhino morph early while we're at it. Oh, and while I'm thinking of it, can anyone think of any animal that would be... well fire-resistant, if not fire-proof?" I ignored their incredulous looks and started morphing.

"Jake, what are you doing?" Cassie asked me.

My lips had already hardened into a hooked beak, so I replied with Thought Speak, [Fastest way I know to the Gardens is to fly there. Besides, it's cheaper than taking the bus, and since you're mom works there, nobody is going to look twice at you if you just suddenly show up. Besides, we're saving the world. We'll pay them back after the Yeerks are defeated.]

Cassie frowned. "That's a dangerous attitude to have," she argued.

[So is threatening, and then actually killing hundreds of thousands of Yeerks, just to make a point. But I did it just the same.] I finished morphing in silence and flew up to the rafters. None of them had moved since my last statement. [It was war. The end of the war, thankfully, but still war. And like I said, I'm from the future, but only about five or six years at the most. If you must know, the last thing I remember of the future... was my death. Marco and Tobias died with me. Rachel had died a little under two years beforehand. Congratulations Cassie, you're the only Animorph to live past twenty-five.]

I took off into the air and quickly gained altitude. I angled myself towards the Gardens, letting the thermals keep me aloft, not really trying to get any speed, just drifting along. This was harder than I'd thought it was going to be. Not surprising really. To me, Rachel had died years ago, and I hadn't seen Cassie for the same amount of time, save for a ten minute conversation about where to find Tobias for the mission. Marco... was not Marco, and Tobias was still human, both children. Not that I really was some kind of old man, but I'd had my eighteenth birthday. Hadn't quite made it to 21 unfortunately.

Half an hour later, with one quarter of my vision ringed in red, (I cannot say how much a relief it was to finally have a morph clock), I caught sight of a very familiar flash of red-brown tail feathers.

[Loosen up guys,] I called back to them. [Birds of prey aren't flock animals. Anybody below seeing you fly in formation like that is going to know something is up.]

[I cannot believe how COOL this is!] Marco shouted.

[This is amazing!] Tobias agreed.

[Hah! I'm the biggest!] Rachel sneered, flapping her majestic wings needlessly.

Internally I sighed and did a lazy spin in a nearby thermal, bringing me up another few hundred feet in a matter of minutes. The others, still flying in straight lines and flapping like they were ducks. Then I dove straight in front of Rachel, she actually squawked and did the bird version of a backpedaling slide.

[And I'm the fastest,] I said back, coming to a stop a hundred feet below them. [Spread out, Marco, head more North, Cassie more South. Tobias, drop your altitude. And for crying out loud people, you don't have to flap like that. You'll tire yourselves out like that. Just ride the wind and let the thermals lift you up. The body knows how to fly already. Let it.]

With that, we made decent time to the Gardens, the part Amusement Park, part Zoo where Cassie's mom worked as a vet. I directed us all to the roof of one of the public restroom buildings, not all at once and with at least a minute or more between landings. From there, it was simple to drop down behind the building into the bushes and for the girls to walk out on the Women's side, and me and the others to walk out on the Men's side. After that, it was Cassie's job to get us behind the scenes as it were.

Surprisingly, in spite of the odd, and somewhat illegal way of getting here this time, she took us to the same employee's entrance near the otter exhibit in the main building. "Okay, now everyone stay together, and try not to be too suspicious looking," she said. "I'm taking you inside."

"Inside where?" Marco asked.

"Well, the way it works is, there are walkways behind all these exhibits. That's how they feed the animals and give them meds or whatever. Meds are medicines. Sorry." She pointed to an inconspicuous doorway. "Anyway, we can go in through there."

Once we were out of the rain forest and waterfall setting, and in the stark white hallways, that smelled a bit like the boy's locker room after gym class, Cassie started leading us towards where I knew from memory was the gorilla enclosure.

I paused at a familiar intersection, and then turned to the rest. "You guys go on ahead. Cassie, get Marco his gorilla morph, and Rachel her elephant morph. And if you have the time for it, get something lethal for both you and Tobias." I hesitated, "Probably something that can fly, for Tobias."

"Jake!" she exclaimed. "Where are you going?"

I didn't bother turning around as I replied, "To get my tiger morph!" I was already walking down the path I knew lead to the tiger exhibit. None of them tried to stop me, so I just assumed that they went on ahead to Big Jim's habitat.

The moment I turned the corner however, a sound like the buzzer you hear on game shows suddenly echoed up and down the hall, so I couldn't hear where it originated from. Then the words appeared practically in front of my face, and I realized I'd been caught up in the Game yet again.

-CHALLENGE-

_You have Unlocked your first challenge!_

After reading that, a bell chime sounded and the whole world grayed out and sort of was put on pause or something, and new script appeared over the rest.

-ANIBASE ENTRY UNLOCKED!-

-10 EXP Gained!-

-1 Animorph Point Gained!-

They just sort of stayed there in the air for a bit, but I didn't see a blinking cursor or anything, so I wasn't quite sure what to do about it. I was a bit curious about what it meant by 'Animorph Point' though. Looking a bit closer, I saw that a couple of the words on this were actually colored blue, Andalite blue, while the rest were white letters bordered in black. Unable to help myself, I reached out and touched the blue 'Animorph Point' words.

Instantly, a screen, much like the starting screens, popped up in front of me and began typing out words, specifically the definition to the blue words that I'd touched.

-ANIMORPH POINTS-

_"Animorph Points are similar to Training Points, only they are applied to advances in either your morphing powers, or the abilities of specific morphs, granting you either greater control over them, or granting you special powers. You can spend Animorph Points at Cassie's Barn, once you have unlocked the Anibase."_

Once I'd finished reading, as though it had sensed that, the screen disappeared and I was back at the other screen, but the words 'Animorph Point' were no longer blue, but the EXP still was. Sighing, I touched the EXP and quickly read through the explanation that popped up.

-EXP (Experience Points)-

_"Experience points count towards leveling up your characters. The lower the level, the less experience needed to reach the next level, but the higher the level, more experience is needed for each additional level. At each level, all character's base stats are boosted accordingly. Any EXP gained counts towards all the Unlocked Characters in your team. Upon Unlocking a Character, all the EXP gained during gameplay will be tallied and applied to the new character. EXP starts off at 0 at the start of the game for all Characters."_

After it finally disappeared, the other screen also disappeared and the world finally un-paused. The words talking about the Challenge were still there. I also noticed the word 'Challenge' was likewise in Andalite blue. Readying myself for it, I touched the blue word, and thankfully wasn't startled when the screen popped up.

-CHALLENGES-

_"Challenges are special events that can be Unlocked in the Game, sometimes through story events, but some require special circumstances be met first before being Unlocked. You can replay a non-story Challenge at any time via the Anibase, though only the first time will grant you EXP and Animorph Points, there are other rewards to be gained. Some events and areas and even weapons can only be unlocked by clearing certain challenges, some of them in a precise order."_

Once the screen had disappeared, I was back in the hall with the words just hovering there in front of me. Except now, instead of the message about unlocking it, I had a question with some Yes/No answer buttons beneath it.

-CHALLENGE-

_Challenge: Get to the Tiger Enclosure without any of the guards seeing you, or trying to stop you. Get there in less than five minutes for Gold Medal Reward. Get there in less than ten minutes for Silver Medal Reward. Get there without being spotted once for Bronze Medal Reward._

_Do you accept the Challenge?_

-YES- or -NO-

"What is this? X-Box?" I couldn't help asking myself as I, rather foolishly, hit the 'Yes' button. Instantly, a digital clock appeared at the top of my vision, no matter where I looked, it was there. And it was counting up. I decided to quit standing there like an idiot and hurried down the corridor.

I hadn't even gone ten steps when the first guard, ironically the same one that had almost caught me and Marco the first time around, came around the corner. Thankfully there was another corner that I could duck around in time, though barely in time. The clock kept counting, but the guard wasn't going anywhere. Didn't take me much to recognize what was happening.

"I hate this game," I whispered and started looking for an alternate route, or maybe some way to distract the guard. That's when I noticed the door right next to me. Ducking inside real quick, I realized it was sort of a locker room. And there, glowing softly, was a white coat with a Gardens badge on the lapel. I reached out to take a look at it and suddenly I was wearing the coat and back outside in the hallway. I had that ring around my vision again, like the Morph Clock, but it was turning red a lot faster than the Morph Clock moved.

"Heh, Pac-Man eat your heart out," I laughed as I realized I was in a very real version of the same game. I turned the corner and quickly made my way past the guard. He never so much as glanced at my face, just took one look at the coat and let me past. I considered taking his golf cart, like last time, but I was pretty sure that would risk more than it was worth. I hurried down the hall I knew went to the tiger enclosure. Two more guards were patrolling down the next hall.

I was about to walk out between them, but suddenly the coat began to flash and then it disappeared like it had never been there. Grumbling, "I _really_ hate this Game!", I took a few seconds to time the guards as they walked back and forth and then hurried across so I actually went behind them in their blind spots, and thankfully my sneakers didn't squeak on the linoleum, so I actually made it past without them seeing me.

The next bit was much harder, because it was practically a maze in and of itself, and the guards weren't moving, but were posted at specific corners. I know this because I came across the Security Room that showed rows of monitors of the halls I still had to cross before getting there. Ironically, the Security Room was actually empty, at least it was for the few moments I was outside of it. The door was unlocked too. Taking a quick look around, I saw another glowing coat., and a hat. I also saw what looked to be, and yep it was, buckets of raw meat.

Considering my options, and what I'd seen happen with the coat from before, I took the raw meat, and the hat. The hat was the same as I'd seen the people who fed the animals wore. The ring reappeared in my vision and I was down the hall like a shot with the buckets in hand. I tried not to look like I was rushing, but the redder that ring in my vision got, the quicker I walked. I made it past the last guard just as the hat began to flicker off my head. Strangely, the bucket of meat hung around.

I made it to the door of the Tiger enclosure, and just as I touched the door handle for it, there was a chime, like what you might hear from a microwave, and there on the door, more writing appeared.

-CHALLENGE COMPLETED!-

_New Record! 00:04:59.87_

_Gold Medal Reward!_

-100 EXP Gained!-

-1 Animorph Point Gained!-

-$500.00 Currency Gained!-

"Whoa," I felt around for my wallet in my back pants pocket and sure enough, I had twenty-five 20 dollar bills in my wallet. "OK," I muttered as I went through the door, putting my wallet away, "Not hating the Game so much right now."

And then I was face-to-face with a lazy tiger, who was looking at me like I was lunch.

***Chapter 3 END***


	63. Animorphs: The Game 'Level Up'

After acquiring my Tiger morph, and using the raw meat as a distraction so I could get away intact, I reentered the hallways and felt a sudden surge shoot through me. I'd gained 40 EXP from acquiring my Battle Morph, as the Game called it, and all of a sudden the world goes on pause again and I'm getting a level up notice.

-LEVEL GAINED: Level 3!-

-1 Animorph Point Gained!-

-STATS GAINED-

_+1 Attack, +1 Defense, +1 Strength, +1 Speed, +1 Endurance, +1 Agility, +1 Intelligence, +1 Perception, +1 Charisma, +1 Luck_

"OK, that has got to be the most balanced level up I've ever seen," I commented. The world resumed normality and I suddenly found myself with extra time on my hands, as well as pretty much no clue about where the others were or if they'd gotten caught already. Recalling the only other morph I used more frequently in battle than not, I started looking for the rhinoceros area.

Amazingly, all the guards that I'd had to sneak past were no longer at their posts. Must have had something to do with the Game, I figured, but it was concerning all the same. Especially when I was reminded rather abruptly that there were still security cameras all over the place. I decided to err on the side of caution and the next available enclosure I came across, I went in. Low and behold, the Rhino exhibit.

"Now I know something is messing with me," I said, mostly to keep up the commentary. Hey, if Spiderman can do it in all his games, why can't I?

Great, now I'm starting to sound like Marco.

Well, since I was here...

It was a bit harder to get out to where the rhinos were without being seen, unlike the first time where I just sort of landed on one and hid behind it to de-morph and acquire it's DNA and then morph back out of there. Not to mention I had Tobias as a lookout for me at the time.

"Game, don't fail me now," I muttered as I made my way to the open feeding area. Apparently somebody heard me as there stood the rhino, for all the world looking like it had been waiting on me the whole time. A couple quick pats as it munched down the contents of its feeding trough, and I had my second Battle Morph. Rather than risk going back into the halls and getting Cassie in trouble, I morphed Falcon and flew out of the exhibit and angled over towards the theme park side of the Gardens.

Once up in the air, it didn't take me long to find the others in the crowds. Hey, that's what falcons do after all!

I kept note of their location and then went to the nearest restroom and de-morphed, then hurried to where I had last seen them. Thankfully they weren't too far away from there, and obviously they had been looking for me just the same.

"Hey guys, miss me?" I grinned, walking up behind them.

"Jake!" they all cried. Rachel and Cassie actually turned and hugged me.

"Where did you go?" Cassie asked.

"Where I said I was going," I told them, "To get my tiger morph. And since I had the time, I went and got a Rhino morph. Everybody get something?"

"Yeah, I got Big Jim, what were you thinking? Are you insane? Going off on your own like that?" Marco shouted at me.

"Tobias and I got a hyena, one of them was sedated in the clinic and thankfully no one was there," Cassie said, "Jake, why did you run off like that?"

"Because the last time, Marco and I got chased by security to the Tiger area, and I very nearly got eaten the first time, but to be perfectly honest, my Battle Morph has always been a tiger and I didn't feel like changing it up. Besides, it's fine. I'm fine. Rachel got her elephant morph, right?"

"Yeah, how come you get to dictate what we all get to morph now, anyway?" she asked.

I shrugged and replied, "I'm just telling you guys what you got the first time around. And they worked well. Cool news about the Hyena. Tobias, when we go down to the cave, morph hyena instead of hawk. Let's all morph and get home. We're going to the school while everybody is at the Sharing Beach Party. So make your excuses now."

"Jake... are you sure this is a good idea?" Cassie asked me.

"It's the only one I've got," I told them, leading the way back to the restrooms/changing area. An hour later, we were all back at our respective homes, making various excuses not to go to the Beach Party and to still be out of the house all night.

I told Tom and our parents that I was going to Marco's to work on homework. Since we typically played video games at my house, all things considered, there wasn't a lot of worry that we'd be doing anything else at Marco's place. Likewise, Marco was telling his dad that he was going to my place, and Rachel and Cassie were telling theirs they were going to each other's houses. Later, when we met up, Tobias said he'd just told his Uncle that he was going "out" and that had been that.

We met at the school, just behind the sheds in the back. While I was reasonably sure that the Gleet Bio Filter and other more advanced security measures wasn't already in place, I couldn't be sure about any other existing security that might be in place. And what with this 'Game' thing going on, I couldn't really be sure the secret entrance was still there or not.

"All right, lets get to the roof, and then we'll..." I started to say, but Marco and Rachel were moving before I could say or do anything else. The walked right up to the nearest window and popped it own like it was nothing.

"Mrs. Drake's classroom," Rachel pointed out.

"She never locks the windows and likes to keep them open, even during the winter," Marco added with a mock shiver.

I sighed and shrugged with a small laugh. "Guess I'm still too used to doing things the hard way. OK, let's do this."

Once we were inside, I quickly led us all to the janitor's closet and twisted the hook on the wall. The panel on the back wall slid to the side and the noise was heard soon after. There was a deep sloshing, swooshing sound, almost like gentle surf breaking on the shore. But that was the nice sound. The other sounds were horrifying despairing cries, terrified screams, shouts, shrieking triumphant laughter.

"You sure this is just the Yeerk pool?" Marco said in a nervous, shaky voice. "I see a guy with horns and a pitchfork and I am outta here."

I stepped into the opening. The stairs were steep and there was no rail, so you felt like you were about to pitch forward with every step. We descended together. The door closed automatically behind us.

This was different from before. And suddenly I realized why as we made our way down the carved-straight-from-the-bedrock stairs. When Elfangor had first come around, none of us could morph and we'd actually stayed around to watch him die and then ran for our lives, literally. In the process, we alerted the Yeerks that there had been witnesses, specifically teenagers. One Controller in particular, a cop, had been questioning Cassie more than the rest of us and had caught her and was taking her down here to be questioned or infested. Also, Tobias had shown up already in morph and we'd waited extra time before coming in.

"So much for not changing too much," I muttered to myself as we came to the Yeerk Pool proper. It was as big and foreboding as I remembered. I was really glad when the Military caved this place in after the war.

We clustered closer to the center of the stairway. It was a sheer drop off the side of the stairs. "This is gigantic," Marco said. "This isn't just under the school. This is under half the town.

Those stairways must lead up to a dozen secret entrances." He shook his head. "Jake, they have this entire area set up with secret passageways. Oh, man. This is worse . . . this is so much worse . . . So much bigger . . . "

"Marco," I said with a resigned tone, "This isn't even the impressive alien stuff. All this? Was done with human tools. Human man power. The Controllers, Taxxons, etc, working as a slave labor force. See the machinery over there?" I pointed. A bunch of Caterpillars and other construction equipment were sitting idle near the wall of the gigantic cavern. "Wait until we blow up the Pool Ship, then you'll see exactly how much worse it really is."

"... I can't do this," Marco whimpered.

"Your Mom is alive Marco," I played my trump card.

"What?" he nearly screamed, but his self-preservation instincts were on the ball enough to keep him from drawing attention. "What are you talking about Jake? That's not funny!"

"No, it's not," I answered back, straight faced. We were nearing the bottom now. "Your Mother is Visser One. Or rather, the Yeerk that has taken control of her and had control of her for years is Visser One. She faked her death. And she's going to be here to 'inspect' Visser Three in about two months. We're going to get her back. But first..."

I quickly took us to a hidden nook, one where we'd hidden before... where _I_ had hidden before. Time to get this party started, I thought to myself.

"Tobias, please tell me that you have something more than your hawk morph?" I looked to the blond boy with worry.

"Uh, yeah, Cassie got us to the clinic and they had a hyena there, strapped down so we could both acquire it. Rachel got an elephant. Why?" he replied.

"I'm going to be honest with all of you," I whispered, keeping an eye out to make sure we hadn't been spotted. "Tobias, the first time we did this, going to the Yeerk Pool, you got trapped in morph. You pretty much spent the rest of your life trapped in the body of a hawk. On top of that, I've changed things too much from the way it happened before. Things are about to get real chaotic, real fast. You need to be on your guard and look out for each other. There are no guarantees that just because we lived through this war the first time that we will again. There was more than one time where there were a few too many close calls."

"So," I took a deep breath and ran my fingers through my hair as I gave them the choice that I no longer had, "this is everyone's last chance. I can take up this fight. I've done it before, I know what I'm getting myself into. Everybody just go right back up these stairs, maybe morph those first animals we used to escape the construction site, and go home and know that I'm taking care of it. This doesn't have to be your fight."

They just stared at me for what felt like the longest time. Then Marco snorted, like I'd tried to tell a funny joke and failed spectacularly. Cassie and Rachel exchanged some kind of look and then Cassie hugged me while Rachel put on a very familiar expression. Tobias, however, his expression had gone entirely neutral. He then spoke very familiar words.

"I'll go with you," Tobias said, "For the Andalite."

"Prince Elfangor would understand if you walked away, Tobias," I retorted.

"Maybe, but I wouldn't," he said, putting the final nail in the coffin, so to speak.

"I tell you to de-morph, you de-morph, you got that?" I ordered him. He nodded his head.

I hesitated and then started issuing orders. If we were going to do this, we had to do it now. "All right. Tobias, go ahead and morph hawk, you'll be our eyes in the sky. Stay as high as you can and only get involved if it looks like we won't be able to handle things on our own. Tell us what's coming and be the eyes in the back of our head basically. Rachel, go elephant. See those tanks over there?" I was pointing to the natural gas tanks that were next to some of the buildings that were down here. "Toss them into the Yeerk Pool. Cassie, hyena?"

She nodded and seemed to blush when I squeezed her close.

"You're with me then. We'll be doing as much damage and creating as much chaos as we can. Marco?"

"Big Jim?" he guessed with a wry grin.

"See if you can get your hands on a Dracon Beam. The ray guns the guards will all be using. Stick with Rachel, make sure she can get to those tanks and get them into the Yeerk Pool. Once they're in there, have Tobias help you with aiming and blow the tanks up with a Dracon Beam. If Visser Three shows up... he's mine."

"Go team?" Marco offered a sort of group handshake/high-five. I smirked and put my hand on top of his, and instead said, "Don't die." Everybody put their hands on top of mine and repeated the words back at me.

I turned around and began to morph. The others morphed around me, already splitting off into their assigned tasks. The morph clock filled my vision, but more than that, at the edges of my vision, sort of out of the corner of my eye type of thing, I saw four other smaller rings. If I bothered to focus on them, I could see an animal face and a name beneath the face with a white ring around both. White rings that were slowly turning red in time with my own.

[Useful.] I thought to myself. I then put it out of my mind and focused on my surroundings instead.

Right before I could charge out into the open however, everything went gray and everybody, even my friends, stopped moving. Having experienced this several times now, I recognized the Game interfering yet again.

[All right! Enough is enough! Ellimist! Is this you? Answer me!]

Rather than the nigh-omnipotent being appearing in his usual mysterious fashion, the familiar game text appeared right in front of my face. It looked kind of weird through tiger eyes, but it was still legible. Something else I noticed that when the world went gray, all the morph clocks stopped at the same time.

-You Are About To Enter A Combat Situation-

-ANIBASE ENTRY UNLOCKED-

-10 EXP Gained!-

-1 Animorph Point Gained!-

There was a chime, telling me more things had been unlocked. As the message disappeared and a new one took it's place, I soon figured out what it was.

-COMBAT TRAINING UNLOCKED-

-Whenever you are at Cassie's Barn or have access to the AniBase, you now have the option to replay certain combat situations in order to practice combos and other special skills with the benefit of no actual danger. To select an unlocked Combat Training exercise, from the AniBase menu choose _TRAINING_.-

The word Training was in Andalite Blue, so rather than waste time growling about it, I swiped my paw through the word and waited for the Game to unpause already. Rather than come up with some kind of definition for what it had already definied, all the screens disappeared, but a new one appeared. This one, however, was not like the others.

It was... it was sort of like the Thought-Speak version of the screens I'd been seeing so far. So it wasn't really Thought-_Speak_, maybe more like Thought-Writing?

[COMBAT IN MORPH]

[Every morph has it's own unique capabilities, and instincts that allow you to know how to best use those capabilities. While not exact, the basic attacks of any morph, no matter what the form, can be considered the same as a 'Punch', a 'Kick', and 'Unique' for a human. Now that you have unlocked Combat Training, you have unlocked your first default combination attack, or _Combo_.]

The world was still on pause, and this message was appearing inside my head, so unfortunately I couldn't press on the highlighted word at the end of said message, but thankfully it appeared I didn't have to as it was overwritten by a new Thought Message.

_"Combos are combination attacks that allow more damage to be done than just the standard attacks, and sometimes even a string of standard attacks. Each morph has it's own unique Combos and Special Attacks. For each Combo that any character unlocks or reveals, similar Combos are unlocked for all of that Character's morphs, even future morphs that they have yet to acquire. Combo collection does not spread throughout a Player's team, so if a character on your team has not been able to unlock their own Combos, they may require additional Training."_

All of a sudden a whole new menu popped up and I felt myself sort of disconnect from my body, like I was suddenly a human controlling the tiger body rather than _being_ the tiger. I tried to stand up and walk around. My tiger body started prowling around where I walked, but rather than on all fours, I felt like I was walking in my own body on my own two feet.

-AVAILABLE ATTACKS-

[Tiger Slash] - [Tiger Pounce] - [Tiger Bite] - [Tiger Roar]

-AVAILABLE COMBOS-

[Striped Slash]

-You Have [3] Animorph Points Available. Would You Like To Acquire/Level Up Your Combos/Attacks?-

-YES- or -NO-

_'OK, I'm somewhat impressed,'_ I acknowledged I reached out with my 'hand' and selected the yes option. Immediately the menu shifted in my head.

-Tiger Slash-

"_Tiger Slash is the default claw swipe attack. Quick, brutal, and definitely leaves it's mark. Does 3 pts of Battle Damage per strike. Add three points per level. Current Level: 0 Animorph Points Required To Reach Next Level: 1"_

-Tiger Pounce-

_"Tiger Pounce is the default lunge or 'kick' attack. Fast, powerful, and signature cat move. Does 2 pts of Battle Damage per strike. Add four points per level. Current Level: 0 Animorph Points Required To Reach Next Level: 1"_

-Tiger Bite-

_"Tiger Bite is the default bite attack. Every fanged animal has a Bite attack. Powerful, effective and quite often letha. Does 5 pts of Battle Damage per strike. Add five points per level. Current Level: 0 Animorph Points Required To Reach Next Level: 1"_

-Tiger Roar-

_"Tiger Roar is the Tiger Morph's Unique attack. Does no Battle Damage, but has a one percent chance of paralyzing enemies with fear. Add ten percent per level. Current Level: 0 Animorph Points Required To Reach Next Level: 2"_

-Striped Slash-

_"Striped Slash is the Default Combo for the Tiger Morph. To use in combat, simply initiate a Tiger Slash and Tiger Pounce (Punch + Kick) at the same time to use a Dash Attack that does 5 pts of Battle Damage. Current Leve: MAX"_

-Striped Lunge-

_"Striped Lunge is a Combo for the Tiger Morph. To use in combat, simply initiate a Tiger Pounce and Tiger Slash (Kick+Punch) at the same time to use a heavy takedown maneuver that does 5 pts of Battle Damage. Animorph Points Required To Purchase: 2"_

-Cat Attack-

_"Cat Attack is a Combo that is available for any feline morph. To use in combat, initiate a Bite+Punch, Punch+Kick, Unique Attack in proper sequence to unleashe a Special Attack that does over 10 pts of Battle Damage. Animorph Points Required To Purchase: 3"_

-Lord of the Jungle-

_"TEAM COMBO: Requires all member's of Player's Active Team to have at least one Jungle Combo purchased already. Unleashes devastating Team Combo Attack that does exponential damage to either one or many enemies. Animorph Points Required To Purchase: 5"_

'_I take that back, I'm in awe!_' I thought as I went over each of my upgrade options. There was also the fact that my available points were somewhat limited, making me wish that I'd taken the time to search out more of those things. Right now my options were to upgrade all of my base attacks, _one_ of my base attacks and my special attack, or purchase a new special attack of one kind or another. There was also to consider that if Battle Damage points were being talked about that meant that all the enemies, Hork Bajir, Taxxons, Human-Controllers, even Visser Three now had a certain number of Hit Points to go through before they got taken down. And Visser Three was most definitely a Level Boss, no doubt about that.

If I had more points, I couple probably upgrade the whole lot of it, but as it stood, I only had the three that I stumbled across. The thing about the Cat Attack and the other combo, they both sounded that, while they did plenty of damage, took a while to pull off. And the Cat Attack especially, it was right up there with the more complex combos in any fighting game you'd care to name. Not quite the most difficult, but harder than pulling off an Ultimate Hadoken in Street Fighter Alpha 3!

Albeit, strictly because I'd have to be _acting out_ the moves rather than just hitting them on a controller!

Finally, I made my decision and upgraded all three of my basic attacks, raising their Battle Damage stats from three, two and five, to six, six and ten. I planned on using Bite as often as possible, and roaring every few seconds just to paralyze as many as I could. And then the worst thing possible that could have happened... happened.

A red bar and a blue bar, not rings, bars appeared at the bottom of my vision. It was pretty clear that the red was my own Hit Points, or Health. Unfortunately, it was just as clear that the blue bar was the Game's equivalent of Mana. There were tiny letters that if I focused on them close enough, I could make them out to be 'HP' and 'MP' so that helped out in figuring it out too. HP usually meant Health Points. MP usually Magic Points, though in my case I would assume _Morph_ Points, and a way of limiting how many combos and special attacks I could use at a time.

This game sucks!

***Chapter 4 END***


	64. Animorphs: The Game 'Game Over'

Hork Bajir were everywhere. Twice as many Taxxons were swarming out of every nook and cranny the moment we charged out of our hiding place. Cassie stuck by my side while Rachel and Marco split off towards the objective I'd given them, barreling through all that got in their way and then some. Tobias had taken to the air and was a constant commentary in the back of our heads.

As for myself, well, thankfully the Game hadn't screwed me over too badly, and the 'controls' for fighting were easy to figure out and even easier to use in the heat of the moment. It helped that, before the final mission that really did kill me, I had the opportunity to play around with that new video game system from Nintendo. Don't remember what it was called just this moment, but you had to actually shake and move the controller to do some of the moves on it. For the rest, well, the tiger instincts on attacking weren't completely supressed and helped augment my own human instincts just fine.

It was melee combat, not turn-based like you'd find in a typical RPG. Plus, the Game seems to think I need a 'Spider-Sense' as it were, because whenever something is about to attack, a little icon (that clearly means 'ATTACK'!) appears over their head, giving me warning to either dodge, or attack first.

After the first few Hork Bajir and a Taxxon or two, I started to get into a zone, like with any video game. Unfortunately, this Game deals with reality and while I'm sure there are not an infinite number of troops the Yeerks can throw at us, there certainly is more than we can safely handle. On the bright side, I noticed Rachel and Marco had gotten the fuel tank and were in the process of lumbering it towards the Yeerk Pool. The only problem was that Rachel was getting hammered and more Controllers were attacking her than me and Cassie.

[We need to help out Rachel and Marco!] I thought-spoke to Cassie. [Go! I'll be right behind you! Tobias!]

[Yeah Jake?] he sounded tense.

[We need a bigger distraction to draw them away from Rachel,] I told him what I needed, trusting him like I trusted the 'old' Tobias, [Got anything?]

[Uh... like what? I mean, it's all just a great big mess from... wait a second! Maybe. Maybe, maybe, maybe.] Tobias's thought-speak was sounding panicked all of a sudden.

Then, just as I took down my last Hork Bajir with a _Striped Slash_ combo, there was a familiar sound of a hawk's scream. And then a very _un_familiar sound... of a whole lot of squeaks. Bat squeaks! Pretty soone the whole roof of the cavern was filled with flying rodents. Enough that even the Taxxons stopped and stared at the writhing mass of so many bats.

I couldn't be sure, but it certainly felt like my Tiger morph had a very 'cat that ate the canary' grin on it as I raced through the stunned masses to help my friends. I can only guess as to what they might be thinking is going on, but it's safe to say that at least a few of them would be saying that _all_ of those bats are actually an Andalite army in morph. When a couple of lone Dracon beams shot up into the mass, that was enough to confirm it for me and we had our distraction. I tackled one poor sod that was pointing his alien weapon shakily towards the ceiling and gave him a nice scar to go with the concussion I gave him from my 'punch' and then carefully picked up the Dracon Beam in my mouth, though it felt to me like I'd just picked it up with my right hand, and hurried over to Rachel, who was only now reaching the edge of the Yeerk Pool.

She heaved and tossed it over the edge, but as strong as elephants are, life is not a cartoon and it didn't land in the middle or make a big splash or anything. In fact, it just kind of floated there along the side. I tossed the Dracon Beam in my mouth up to Marco.

[Here. Let's get back to the stairs and then blast that thing!] I ordered.

Then I looked up and sent a thought-speak message in that direction, [Tobias? How are you hanging in there?]

[Uh, argh! Um, not too, ow! Bad, I guess. Wow, bats really don't like hawks, huh?]

[Natural predators, but we're essentially inside their nest, so that would explain...] Cassie started to lecture, but I interrupted her.

[Cassie? Later. Tobias! Get to the stairs! Fly as far up them as you can and the demorph!]

[But Jake...!] he protested.

[DO IT!] I ordered. [What did you agree to? Answer me!]

[That... I demorph when you tell me to and not to take any stupid risks,] he answered with a painful sound. [Going.]

[Uh, Jake, I lost my shot,] Marco informed me at that moment.

[Take it the moment you get it back. Rachel, how you holding up?]

[I can make it to the stairs, but there's no way that I'll be able to go up them. I'm too big and too weak!] she 'gasped' as I noticed her start to stumble a little bit.

[Marco, soon as you blow the tank, get down. Rachel start to de-morph when you hear the tank blow. Cassie.]

Whatever I was going to say was prematurely interrupted. By the arrival of Visser Three.

He didn't even bother with any kind of intro-movie or prepared speech or for that matter, even his typical round of slanderous insults and orders to his underlings. He walked out of wherever it was he came from and started to morph. Thankfully the Game ensured that it was that same multi-headed firebreather thing. Never did find out what planet that was from.

Next thing I know, I've got in all capital letters right in front of his completed morph;

-BOSS BATTLE-

[Get Rachel to the stairs!] I ordered. [Marco, you help her! Cassie, you cover them both! I got Visser Three.] _Boy I'm really starting to wish I'd gotten one or two of those stronger combos right now_! I thought to myself.

[Pathetic,] Visser Three casually dismissed me and turned his heads to my friends making for the stairs. Before he could launch even one fireball, I went in and did the equivalent of button-mashing, all in hopes of just getting his attention. The good news, I succeeded. The bad news? Well, now I had his attention.

_Here's hoping the game affects the bad guys more than me_! I dodged what I could, hoping that like all Boss Battles, he would fall into some kind of routine. No such luck. This was a real fight and I was seriously outmatched here.

I started off by charging right in and striking with everything I had at whatever part of the monster I could reach. Usually this was just the legs. Sometimes he tried to stomp me, but when I proved too agile ('_Thank you Leveling Up!'_), he then moved on to either trying to smash me with his long spindly three-clawed arms. He had eight of them, so when I actually managed to bite and claw one so badly that it hung limp and useless, there were plenty of others that paid me back in full.

All during this, of course, Visser Three kept up a steady commentary, meant to be insulting or demeaning and probably spark some kind of outrage in all of us. I've gotten so used to staying quiet around the monster over the years that I didn't even bother responding. Instead, I focused all of my energies on strategy and actually trying to walk away from this alive.

Unfortunately, while I'd like to have been able to focus purely on Visser Three, he was not the only Yeerk in the room trying to kill me. Some of the prisoners had escaped their cages, and Marco and Cassie had come back to help them. Marco had blown the tank, a really big explosion, but all it did was start a small leak in the side of the pool. I doubt it even killed the Yeerks that were swimming around it, instead just tossing them into the air and making small waves, smaller even than what was already caused by the millions of swimming slugs.

By the time they'd gotten halfway up the stairs, I was burned, beaten, and had probably broken more than a few bones. Still, I held Visser Three's attention and even got him to take out some of his own troops with wild attacks and a whole lot of fireballs. Unfortunately, this meant that, even with the explosion and damage to the Yeerk Pool, he was not about to let me get away. In fact, he had actually placed himself between me and the nearest stairs going up, which also happened to be the one the others were still climbing.

[Nice try. But there are plenty more where those came from, Andalite scum!] he Thought Spoke, his voice pure evil in my mind. Then he turned just two of his heads away from me, while all the others started bombarding me with everything they had, those other two picked off the humans and animals fleeing up the stairs.

[NOOO!] I screamed when I saw the hyena that was Cassie burn before my eyes. I was on him even faster than the first time when he'd attacked Tom on those same stairs. I think I even managed to kill one of the heads before they all burned me and forced me off of him. Too bad that didn't kill me.

I lay paralyzed, helpless as I watched him kill the other humans we'd freed and all my friends. Even Tobias, human, who had come back to help try and drag Marco the rest of the way up the stairs. They were vaporized together. It wasn't until Visser THree turned back to me and pounded me with his seven remaining clawed appendages that one of my ribs finally punctured by heart and I bled out internally within seconds.

Next thing I know after that...

-GAME OVER-

"Well... that sucked," I commented as I suddenly found myself back in the black space that was the loading screen. "At least I can finally..." I started to say as I reached out to hit the Load Game option, but was interrupted by a familiar buzzer sound and I got the message -ERROR: No Data Saved!- before going back to the startup screen. "... What? Oh come on! I-I saved! I know I did I... never actually found a Save Point or created a Save Game..."

I collapsed and just lay there in the empty space for a long while. No clock, no way to keep time, but that didn't really matter did it? I was dead twice over now. And it was pretty clear I was in Hell!

"I hate this game," I said an indeterminate amount of time later, and then sat up and punched New Game with all my anger and frustration. Didn't even bother looking to see if all the other things I'd unlocked were still there or not. Knowing my luck, they wouldn't be there anyway.

Just as I started to fall to the Earth in front of Elfangor's ship, I said mostly to myself, "Can't we just _skip_ this part?"

Next thing I know, I'm walking out of the mall with the others.

Huh. Cool.

***Chapter 5 END***


	65. Animorphs: The Game New Player

My name is Tobias.

Last thing I was aware of, I was in a ship named after my dead girlfriend on the other side of the galaxy as Jake, our fearless leader, ordered us to ram the _Rachel_ into the Blade Ship. Don't remember much of the actual crash. But I do know that I remember other things happening _after_ the crash happened!

One second I'm in space, seeing things I can't explain, and hearing Jake cuss up a storm. Then I briefly recall seeing something move and all of a sudden I'm in the middle of re-entry on the _outside_ of an Andalite Scouter! I hear Jake mumble something about skipping and just like that, I'm here. Walking along in human form alongside the others. We were walking out of the Mall and heading towards the Construction Yard.

I almost stopped and shouted for all of us to run the other way, but I don't. Because I know what comes next. My father comes back to Earth and gives us the power to Morph. As much pain and fear and the death that follows these events, I consider it very much worth it to see my father one last time.

Looking around, I can't believe what I'm seeing and what is happening here. The others look the same, except... more innocent. Still children.

Except for Jake. Jake looks like he always did when we were 'On Mission', like the weight of the world was dragging him down and the sins of the past were driving him on to make things right. He hadn't looked like that until after his parents were taken. Then he always looked like that, even years after the war was over and his parents were back. But Tom and Rachel were killed.

Something was wrong here.

I stopped and remembered that this was point at which I had pointed out the blue dot in the sky. Instead of looking up in the sky, I was staring at Jake. _He_ was looking up at the sky with a knowing smirk on his face. Something was really wrong with this.

The others stopped and looked when Jake did, none of them noticing my staring at him. Cassie was the one who cried "UFO!" exactly as I remember it. Marco and Rachel's responses were also the same. Jake, on the other hand, he just stood there with that same knowing smirk on his face. It wasn't the expression of a Yeerk. Or Visser Three, as he was at this point in time. Nor was it the look of an Andalite infiltrator. It was definitely Jake standing there. But it was the Jake from my time, not the child that Jake Berenson should still be.

What was going on here?

A minute later, as the mostly-blue Andalite fighter craft came in for a landing right in front of us, the others were still silent with their mouths hanging open in shock. Jake stood at what the military called 'Parade Rest'. Me? I was falling back on old instincts and hiding my emotions and keeping as still as possible. The door opened, same as before, and out stepped my father, Prince Elfangor. Blue fur, four eyes, two of them on eye-stalks, no mouth, deer body for the lower half, too many fingers on his thin arms, and the scorpion-like bladed tail held up in the back.

"Prince Elfangor," Jake bowed once before asking, "How much time do we have before Visser Three arrives?"

That cemented it for me. Jake knew Elfangor, he knew about Visser Three, and that meant he knew everything. He was the Jake from my time. Jake hurried into the Scouter, unlike last time where he stayed and listened with the rest of us before being asked to go in by my father.

My father... This was my _father_ standing here before me! Alive, breathing, and here he was telling us about the Yeerk threat, using the same words. After the others had more or less accepted things, but before Marco could start making jokes and calling everything insane, I finally lost contol. This was my _FATHER_! I don't care how much of a hawk I still am, I am not letting this opportunity go to waste!

"DAD!" I shouted, racing forward and hugging the man with all I was worth.

[Tobias?] Elfangor gasped, his Thought Speak tinged with longing.

"Hi Dad," I whispered into his furred chest. "Long day at work? It's about time you got home."

"Tobias?" Rachel called, sounding worried.

"Tobias? What the...?" Jake's voice came from behind Elfangor. In his arms he had the Morphin Cube, a tube of some kind, and an Andalite Shredder.

There was a ding, like you hear from microwaves, and words appeared as if by magic above our heads.

-NEW PLAYERS UNLOCKED-

_You have unlocked one of your character's for use as Player!_

_You have unlocked [TOBIAS] by fulfilling the Character's Unlocking Requirements; [Make sure Tobias does not get stuck in morph during the Yeerk Pool Battle]_

_This character is now playable at the start of your next game and/or resume from a saved game._

"Heh," Jake grunted and shook his head. "So, do you remember last time, or is this still the first time for you?"

Took me a second, but I figured out he was talking to me. Still hugging my dad, I answered, "Technically speaking, it's the second time around for me, but if you're talking about what's going on and how it is we're back... yeah, it's the first time. You?"

"Second since this Game thing started. Haven't found a Save Point yet, but supposedly there's one in Cassie's Barn. I keep seeing stuff about an 'Anibase', but haven't figured out what it is yet."

"HELLO? Have you two gone insane?" Marco screamed.

We stared at him and then looked at each other before shrugging.

"We need to move," Jake ordered, holding out the Morphing Cube to my dad. "We don't have a lot of time unfortunately."

[Agreed,] Elfangor nodded his head. He paused and looked down with one of his eye stalks and then whispered to me, [Tobias...]

"Right, right," I nodded my head and finally released him, wiping the tears from my cheeks. "Let's do this."

A few seconds later, we had our morphing powers back and on top of that, Jake had that tube that was filled with Andalite DNA capsules that contained the DNA of animals that would help us escape.

"If I knew that you were back, I would have grabbed the one for our Battle Morphs," Jake told me as he handed me the small metal sphere.

"Wouldn't have done much good," I shrugged in the direction of the others. "When are we going to get Ax?"

I acquired the DNA in my hand and suddenly heard that chime and saw som blue energy lines flow from the sphere and around and then into my body. A message appeared right in front of my eyes;

-DNA Acquired! You can now morph into a _Forest Rabbit_!-

I noticed the same effects surrounded Jake briefly, and he got the message that said he could now morph a Greyhound Dog, but the others were the same as they had always been, no special effects at all.

[He's coming!] Dad warned us.

"Let's morph!" Jake ordered, handing the hand held weapon to my father. "Good luck, Prince Elfangor. I'll do my best to take care of things from here."

[Thank you... Jake was it? Leadership is hard. But often those who work with you make it worth it. My people recognize true leadership in ways that may not seem to make much sense to humans. I trust that my people will come. And when they do, you will need to be prepared to meet them.]

Elfangor got painfully to his feet and took Jake by the shoulders. He arched his tailblade until it rested flush with the top of the Jake's head. [I, War Prince Elfangor, hereby field promote you to the rank of Prince. Go forth, Prince Jake, and Serve Your People.]

Jake just nodded, but I thought for a second I saw him blink away tears. Then the Bug Fighters arrived and shone thos horrible red spot lights. We morphed and we didn't stop running until we reached the neighborhood beyond the field. Rabbits have good hearing. I heard every excruciating sound of my father's death as Jake pointed out the Morph Clock we now had access to and other tidbits he'd discovered about the situation so far. I could hear the relief in his thoughts, and from their lack of reaction to some of his comments, I knew he was keeping them out of the conversation.

He was right though. This stunk of either the Ellimist or Crayak. Unfortunately, neither had shown up to take credit, and until they did, we had to take care of things on our own. Like we usually did.

Just like old times.

***END Chapter 6 "New Players"***


	66. Animorphs: The Game PowerUps

The next morning, I met Jake at his place, he acquired his dog's DNA, and then we both made our way over to Cassie's Barn, picking Marco up along the way.

"First thing, I'm acquiring my hawk morph again," I told them both. "This walking and going around on foot thing bites!"

"Well what other way would you get around by? In a flying saucer?" Marco snapped.

I turned and stared at Marco, until he shuffled and looked away first. Internally I smirked, but my face remained stoic and expressionless on the outside. Side effect of spending the majority of my life as a red-tailed hawk I suppose.

"Flying yes. But I'm not related to the Skrit-Na, Marco. I'm part Andalite. Sort of. My father was in human morph when I was conceived, no doubt, and my mother..." I stopped. "Jake?"

"We'll get her when we have some place safe to put her," was his terse reply. "We already know that she's under survelance and what her current status is. As long as she doesn't remember anything, she'll be OK. Besides, we have another 'Player' to 'Unlock' as you reminded me last night. First stop is getting all our Battle Morphs back, and then we're going to get Ax."

I nodded and resumed pedalling toward Cassie's place.

"Who the heck is Ax?" Marco screamed at us by the time we reached her drive way.

"My Uncle," I replied, smiling on the inside, but still blank faced on the out.

Once out there, as expected, we found Rachel and Cassie already there, and Cassie enjoying a run as a horse. Cassie changed back, showing her talents as an _estreen_, pausing mid-morph so she was like some kind of centaur, or Andalite, minus the tail and eye stalks. As she completed morphing back to human, I couldn't help feeling like I'd missed something, or that something else was different.

"No cop," Jake said to my confused look. "The Yeerks didn't almost catch a bunch of kids last night. They're not on the lookout for us."

"Whoa, what cops?" demanded Rachel.

"Let's take this inside," I suggested. "Is the hawk still in the same place? I want to get back to normal as soon as possible."

"You're not becoming a _nothlit_ this time, Tobias," said Jake sternly. "For a couple of reasons actually, but primarily because it's not worth it and we don't know if the Ellimist would give you back your morphing powers again. I'd rather not risk it."

"What are you guys talking about?" screamed Marco, pulling at his hair with both hands. "This is insane! You all realize this, of course, don't you?"

"In more ways that you can know, buddy," said Jake.

"Ain't that the truth," I mumbled as I ambled over to the injured animals and finally reached the source for my red-tailed hawk morph. What had been by true form for so many years that I had lost count.

"Tobias... are you OK?" Rachel asked me, sounding concerned.

"What did you tell us last time this happened?" I asked Jake rather than answer he extremely uncomfortable question.

"The truth," he answered. "Nobody believed me. Nobody else would be in charge though. So, do we attack the Yeerks, or do we go and try to get to Ax?"

"How did you do against them this time around? Other than managing to keep me from being stuck in morph that is?"

"Lost. Bad."

"Not particularly looking forward to dying in some kind of real life video game, and it would be better if the others could remember and know what is going on. Ax would be a bigger help for other reasons... _Prince_ Jake." I smiled openly at him after calling him that.

"Oh don't you start," he rolled his eyes.

"Can't help it. Dad made it official and everything. You got a field-promotion. Until the Andalites arrive and establish Z-Space communication with their home government, it's as legally binding as being recruited and going into the Andalite Space Navy. Not just an _Aristh_ calling you that out of a need for command structure either."

"WHAT ARE YOU TWO TALKING ABOUT?" Marco screamed at the two of us.

"It's complicated," said Jake with a shrug.

"Try us," said Cassie, arms crossed.

And so Jake told them. While he was busy with that, sometimes asking for support, where I usually added an anecdote or two, I went around and collected a few more DNA samples from potentially useful morphs. The wolves weren't here yet, shame, those were userful. Eventually the others believed us and we started making plans. The beginning of those plans, of course, were to get to the Gardens and get our Battle morphs and dolphin morphs. First time around, naive children that we'd been, we had gone via bus and bought tickets. This time Jake lead the charge in morphing bird and flying directly into the Gardens and de-morphing once we were so far past security that no one would question whether or not we'd bought a ticket to get in.

The moment I morphed back into my hawk form, I almost let out a sigh of relief. [Ah, much better. Felt like I'd become permanrntly blind for a bit there.] I couldn't help commenting.

[What are you talking about-whoa! Never mind, I _see_ what you mean!] said Rachel in Thought Speak, still mid-morph, her eyes changing right in the middle of what she'd been saying.

Something that was definitely different this time though were the colored rings. There were two of them. One that was sort of haloed around the edges of my vision that became a white ring slowly turning red when I unfocused my eyes. The other was in the upper part of my vision that only became clear when I intentionally focused nearly all of my attention on it. It was another white ring turning red, smaller though, and there was a faded image of Jake's head in the middle of it. When I didn't focue on it, it was so transparent that it was hardly noticeable at all. I saw no other rings for the others.

[That's one of the other reasons why you won't become a _nothlit_,] Jake informed me via Thought Speak. [The Game has given us a morph clock. I can see yours as well as mine. Must be because we're both 'Players' now. Same thing happens when in a battle situation, except then I really could see the others.]

[Any thoughts on who or what might be behind this?] I Thought Spoke to Jake 'privately', so the others wouldn't overhear.

[It's probably not Ellimist. Not his style. And if it were Crayak, he would be taking credit somehow. At the very least that toadie of his would show up.]

[Good point.] I admitted. [So, any other surprises with this thing that I need to be made aware of?]

[Watch out for Challenges.]

[... I don't want to know, do I?]

[I certainly didn't.] Jake said in Thought Speak. [Although I will admit that if you actually manage to win, it's very worth it. The one Challenge I played last turn, got something called Animorph Points and five hundred dollars. Cash!]

Even though I was a hawk at the moment and hawks displayed surprise very differently than humans, I couldn't help blinking and shooting a double-take at the Peregrine Falcon trailing behind and below me. [Seriously?]

[Seriously.]

[Wow. Don't tell Marco that. When we finally unlock him, probably won't be able to tear him away from all these Challenge things.]

[Yeah.]

[WOULD YOU GUYS WAIT UP ALREADY?] Marco's voice shouted in Thought Speak from two or three miles back.

I Thought Spoke back to him, at a normal, reasonable volume, [You don't have to shout Marco. Thought Speak carries a lot further than you'd expect. No less than ten miles in open air before distance becomes an issue where you have to actually shout. Also, you guys don't have to flap so hard. The body knows how to fly. Let it.]

[Any ideas on how to 'Unlock' the others?] Jake asked in private Thought Speak. {I know we're confident about rescuing Ax will unlock him, but I thought I was in this alone until you tipped your hand last night.]

[It makes sense though, doesn't it?]

[This whole thing is like some convoluted second chance, to do things right,] I continued when he didn't answer immediately. [I get unlocked when you make sure I don't get stuck as a _nothlit_ during our attack on the Yeerk Pool. We're both certain that Ax will be unlocked when we rescue him and he joins the team. And Jake... well, you've always been the leader of the Animorphs, it would make sense that the moment this Game started you would be the default player.]

[So, ways of making things right with the others? How can we even do that? _What_ do we even do?]

We'd reached the Gardens by now and wer beginning our descent. I stayed up in the air, coaching the others in how to land without crashing while Jake went down first and scouted a spot where it was safe to morph. Just before I landed, seeing that I still had more than half of my morph clock in white, I sent one last Thought Speak message to Jake, knowing he couldn't answer immediately.

[I have a couple ideas about that actually. I'll see if I can't Unlock Rachel. And... while I'm sure we both think saving Marco's Mom or telling him might do it, Marco's biggest contribution to us was giving us our name. Last time, did he come up with it, or did you tell him everything?] Seeing Jake's reaction to my words was answer enough. I dove, landed and de-morphed.

The moment we were back behind the enclosures, Jake took off on his own, saying that he was going to get his Tiger morph again, muttering something about Challenges under his breath as he went. I smirked, the only one that really knew what he meant. We went and got Marco his gorrilla morph, Big Jim. Cassie then proposed we go to the elephants.

"I've got a better idea," I suggested with a stoic smirk. "Where's the Grizzly Bear enclosure?"

Before Cassie could answer, however, something caught my attention out of the corner of my eye. Turning to fully face it, I couldn't help blinking and doing a double-take.

There, hanging in the middle of the air just off the hallway in a little alcove that went to some janitor's closet, was a multi-faceted, rainbow-colored glowing gem, about the size of a basketball, save that it was pointed on the top and bottom. The others seemed confused by my sudden distraction, and I tried to ignore the thing, but it was kind of hard to do.

Finally, I couldn't help myself in asking, "Uh, what is that?"

They all looked over at where I was pointing, but by the way they looked back at me with confused expressions told me that they could not see it. That was my first clue that it probably had something to do with this Game thing that was going on. I walked over to the alcove, my curiosity getting the better of me. Well, that and Jake's comments about how the Game could sometimes be beneficial.

"Tobias, are you all right?" asked Rachel.

"..." I reached out a hand, only a few inches from touching the... whatever it was. "I'll let you know in a second," I replied and then reachoued out and put my hand on the floating gem. Only, my hand didn't land on it, it went _through_ it!

A beat later, the gem disappeared, exploding into light and glowing white letters appeared.

-ANIMORPH POINT-

_You have discovered an Animorph Point!_

I was a bit stunned, not that he let it show. I'd heard Jake mention something like this earlier when it came to the Game, but I was pretty sure that he hadn't mentioned seeing floating, glowing crystals that gave you points when you touched them. This thing was so weird.

"Tobias? Are you all right?" Rachel actually shook him this time when she asked.

"... Yeah, I'm fine. Just something that I need to talk to Jake about. Later." I turned to face the others and refocused my attention on my plans for unlocking them. "Cassie? Grizzly Bear enclosure?"

"Uh... this way," she gestured and lead us through the maze of hallways.

When she stopped just outside the door leading to the bear enclosure, Tobias stopped again and just stared. Hovering mid-air, about chest height, right across from the enclosure door was a softly glowing _morphing cube_! Tobias waited patiently to see if any of the others could see or notice it, but they were more nervous about being caught at this juncture than anything else. Tentatively, Tobias reached out and tried to take hold of the floating blue cube. As with the multi-faceted rainbow gem of before, his hand went right through it.

A beat later, the cube disappeared, exploding into light and glowing white letters appeared.

-MORPH CUBE-

_You have discovered a Morph Cube! Collect 100 Morph Cubes to receive 1 Andalite Tech Point!_

_You can use Andalite Tech Points to modify or enhance Morphing Powers!_

"Huh." Tobias blinked. The message disappeared, but the shock and surprise remained. As did the possibilities and potential for what this could mean.

That was for later, however. For now, he had something else to look into as far as this game was concerned. He turned his attention back to the others and directed Rachel to go in and acquire her Grizzly Bear morph. Rachel, in the original timeline (or whatever), had never shared with anyone exactly when or how she'd first gotten her Grizzly Morph, but it was a simple fact that it very quickly became her defacto Battle Morph and the one she relied on the most out of all her morphs.

That's why Tobias believed it was the key to Unlocking her Character and getting her to join them in the Game. Hopefully they would soon find out one way or the other.

***END Chapter 7 "Power-Ups"***


	67. Animorphs: The Game Special Challenge

"How did you find out about these?" Jake asked me, sounding tense.

We were standing in front of another of the 'Animorph Point' crystals, this one just outside the entrance to one of the rides in the Amusement Park section of the Gardens. Not too far away was another Morph Cube, which he had already seen and collected for himself. Surprisingly, while the Animorph Point I had collected was assigned only to me, the Morph Cube count seemed to apply to the both of us. Unfortunately without having at least one Andalite Tech Point, neither of us knew how to see what possible upgrades we could do with said points.

"Sort of just stumbled across it," I answered with a half-shrug. "The others don't see anythimg, and they're starting to look at us like we're more than a bit crazy."

He sighed, running his fingers through his brown hair. "I know," he grumbled, "I know! You know what, screw playing this game or facing the Yeerks. We need to get our team back together, that's our first priority here. Any luck with Rachel?"

"Well, she's got her Grizzly morph by now, and while I expect that will 'unlock' her just as me not being stuck in morph unlocked me, unfortunately we won't know for certain until we start the game over. That's what you said happened with me, right?" I said.

Jake nodded. "I just wish I understood what was going on here! How did we even get involved in all of this? Is it the Ellimist behind it? Crayak? Something else? Is this supposed to be Heaven or Hell?"

I tentatively reached out and put my hand on his shoulder, trying to be comforting. "It's going to be OK, Jake. We'll figure it out. We always do, right?"

He laughed. It was not a nice sound.

"First thing first, one character we absolutely know how to unlock is going to be Ax. Let's go and get him. We need dolphin morphs. Do you remember where the Dome Ship was when we found it?"

"I remember that we only started looking for it a month from now when some of the debis washed up on shore," I shrugged. "And that I couldn't go with you guys, I was stuck on shore until you eventually washed up with Ax in tow."

"Oh, right," he scratched the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Maybe Marco will have an idea?" I shrugged, not knowing what else to suggest.

He snorted and 'collected' the Animorph Point and then turned and walked away.

"It was just a suggestion!" I called after him.

A day later, Jake had us all meeting at the beach. It just so happened to be the day of the Sharing Beach party, so I was thinking that maybe he was planning on following through with the way things originally went, more or less. Boy was I wrong!

"The Andalite Dome ship crashed about twenty or so miles south by south west from here. I happen to know that there is a survivor on board and that the Yeerks aren't looking for him yet. I'm _suggesting_," he paused to look each of us in the eye so we knew he was serious, "that we go and rescue him before they start looking. Any stupid questions before we get to the obligatory protests from Marco about how this is insane?" He ended with a half-crazy smile on his face.

"We're going to get Ax? This early?" I asked.

"I'd rather face the entirety of the Yeerk Invasion force with our usual six rather than our starter group," he shrugged.

"I'm seriously starting to regret even knowing you guys," Marco threw up his hands in frustration. "You talk about this like it's old hat! News flash people! Whatever happened to you two, it hasn't happened to us! And it probably won't! So care to clue us in? Let alone why we're talking about this in the open? I mean, what if... you know... is listening to us?"

"First of all," I answered before Jake could, "we are on the beach alongside a whole bunch of other teenagers on a Saturday. We don't stand out for them to want to listen to in the first place."

"And secondly, the combination of sand, surf and sunlight makes most listening devices fritz out in the first place, not to mention that the noise of the tide coming in covers our conversation quite easily," Jake finished, arms crossed.

Marco blinked. "Oh."

"Who is this survivor?" Cassie asked.

"Who is Ax?" Rachel asked at the same time.

"Long story," Jake answered after we'd shared a look, neither one willing to answer that. "We'll let him tell it when we rescue him."

"What are we all of a sudden? Alien Rescue? Do we let him stay in Cassie's barn? I'm sure her parents would be thrilled at that!"

"Actually I was thinking the woods outside the city," Jake replied.

Marco looked to Rachel and Cassie both, but seeing no support from them, he threw his hands up in the air and growled, "Fine! Fine! How do you propose we go about rescuing this missing alien, huh?"

"Well," I said, "last time we stowed away on a ship that took us most of the way and then took the rest of the way as dolphins." I didn't mention I didn't go with them originally. Something I was grateful for the chance to rectify.

"And just how do you propose we get on a ship to stow away on in the first place?" Rachel demanded, hands on her hips.

"Oh, I'm sure we could talk them into letting us on for free," Marco said. "Just tell them

we're Animorphs."

"Tell them we're what?" Rachel asked.

"Idiot teenagers with a death wish," Marco said.

Jake and I shared a grin. Knew we could talk him around to naming us without either of us having to let the cat out of the bag early. For a second, I thought I heard a chime or a bell, but I brushed it off as some vendor from further up the beach.

"Well, fellow Animorphs," Jake interrupted, "I happen to have another way of getting to our rescuee. Since we're at the beach, how many brought bathing suits?"

"What does that have to do with _anything _that we've been talking about in the _least_?" Marco argued.

Only Rachel, Cassie, and Jake himself raised their hands to the question.

"Tobias, you should be OK, but Marco, I suggest to go get a swimming suit and then meet us up on the pier," he said and then pointed at the pier boardwalk. It wasn't much of a boardwalk, more just a concrete spot where there were lots of fishermen and not much else.

"What are you thinking, Jake?" I asked.

"I'll show you while Rachel and Cassie take Marco shopping for a new swimsuit. Something form fitting please. It's going to be his new morphing outfit. Also, Cassie, see if you can show him the trick behind morphing clothes please. Oh, and before you say anything Rachel, here," he handed her about fifte bucks, cash. "My treat."

"Let's do this!" Rachel grinned and dragged the other two with her up to the surf shop to get Marco a new swimsuit.

"OK, what's really going on?" I asked once they were out of earshot.

"I did some searching yesterday after we finished at the Gardens, and then again this morning before I called everyone," he answered. "Found a lot more Animorph Points and some Morphing Cubes. Enough to get one Andalite Tech Point. Unfortunately, the upgrade that I want to get requires _two_ Andalite Tech Points. Need you to go through the town and get as many Morphing Cubes as you can, as quickly as you can."

"Fine, not a problem," I agreed, "But that still doesn't answer my question."

"The other thing I found," he grinned mysteriously, "is what the Game calles _Special Challenge Areas_. Some are just places where there are Yeerks and I can vaguely recall us having a number of missions when we became aware of what the Yeerks were doing in those areas. Others, like the one at the end of the pier over there, require some... let's call it prerequisites. One of which is to have at least one upgrade to our Morphing Powers and all Players to have completed the first tier of attack upgrades. So... probably want to get as many Animorph Points as possible too."

"This Special Challenge Area, as you call it..." I started to ask.

"The Game calls it that, and yes, it is going to take us to Ax. Just not without a whole lot of... stuff between us and him, I'm sure. Get going, please? Animorph Points and Morphing Cubes? Need that second Andalite Tech Point as soon as possible!"

"All right, I'm going, I'm going!" I started morphing immediately.

An hour later, I was back at the beach, with a considerable boost to my Animorph Point score and enough Morphing Cubes that when combined with the ones Jake had already collected, gave us a total of four Andalite Tech Points, and more than halfway to getting another. I still wasn't too sure about why he cared about this video game stuff all of a sudden, but I wasn't going to argue with him either. Well, not in front of the others at least.

"All right, we're all here, now what?" Marco was the one to ask as we all met up with Jake at the end of the pier. "Are we going swimming off the docks?"

"Yep," Jake grinned at us. We all did a double-take.

"So I bought a new bikini for nothing?" Rachel exclaimed. I struggled to contain my blush.

He shrugged and then replied by stepping up to the very edge of the dock. Suddenly, something I was quite sure the others could not see (yet) came to life the moment he took that step. In the simplest terms I can fathom, without going into the exact design of it all, there was a line with six circles dispersed evenly through it. Jake was standing on one of the middle circles. Right in front of him a Game dialogue box had appeared. I read it.

-SPECIAL CHALLENGE AREA-

_"You are about to enter a Special Challenge Area. Typically called a Dungeon in other RPGs. The rules are simple; All the Players and characters stand on the circles and choose to enter the Special Challenge Area and so long as all Players meet the minimum requirements, you then enter the Special Challenge Area and cannot leave until either you succeed, or all Players are defeated. You can return to Special Challenge Areas as many times as you like to follow other objectives, gain additional rewards, or to discover other secrets."_

Just below that, right in front of Jake, was another screen with a simple Yes/No question in it;

_"Would you like to enter this Special Challenge Area?"_

-YES- or -NO-

Without needing to be prompted, I stepped up beside Jake in the circle to his immediate left. He looked and smiled and we shared a nod. He turned back to the others and ordered, "Get over here guys. We're going for a swim."

Just like that, they were all on the line, filling in the other circles. Rachel was on the other side of me, grinning that familiar smile of hers, saying, "Let's do this!"

There was something odd about this. I honestly cannot remember a single mission in our first year as Animorphs where we all followed Jake's orders without a whole lot more arguing, complaining, and questioning done beforehand. It was almost like the moment he gave an order, we had to obey it all of a sudden. Didn't even think about it, just followed it.

"This is insane," Marco whined.

Jake grinned and shared another look with me, then he reached up and hit the yes button. The dialogue box changed;

-RESCUE AX-

_"This challenge requires a minimum of two Players to particpate. Both Players must have at least Tier [2] Attacks available to them and a Morphing Time of [3] hours. This challenge will take a minimum of six hours to complete. Are you sure you wish to accept this challenge?"_

-YES- or -NO-

"Tier 2 attacks?" I asked him, quietly.

"You'll see," he smirked and hit the yes.

A sudden chime rang in my ears and I had a whole new screen right in front of my eyes.

_"Would you like to upgrade all your attacks? (This will cost you [7] Animorph Points)"_

-YES- or -NO-

Jake nodded at me, so I shrugged and hit the yes option. Immediately I felt a surge of strength shoot through me. A bit like an adrenaline spike, only more focused. It was kinda cool. And then we were in the water and automatically morphing dolphin. And I mean that literally, it was entirely on automatic, I wasn't concentrating on a thing! My body was just morphing all on it's own!

Then a glowing ring appeared in front of our small pod of dolphins.

[Come on guys, this way!] Jake ordered and took off through the ring. Once we'd passed through it, another ring appeared a short distance away. It was simple to figure out how this was going to play after that. I just hoped that we wouldn't have to deal with any sharks or Yeerks this time.

Our echolocation picked up a dark shadow coming in on our left. Spoke too soon, it seemed, it was a shark. And... other stuff.

[Uh, what are those?] Marco asked.

[If I had to guess, I would say mines,] Cassie replied.

[Don't touch them and we should be fine.] Jake tried to reassure us.

[With _sharks_ in the water?] Marco screamed.

[You can go back if you're scared, Marco.] I provoked him.

He made a few more grumbling sounds through Thought Speak, but kept swimming. Something to keep in mind with dolphins swimming, they're mammals, same as us. They need to breathe air and don't have gills like fish. Sharks, on the other hand, do have gills and are in fact fish. So we had to stay pretty close to the surface in order to keep breathing, while they could come up from beneath or behind us with little or no warning. Our echolocation was constant as it seemed the challenges that kept getting thrown in our way were non-stop, and more numerous and more elaborate the further we got to our objective.

After an hour and a half, the others started asking question about our morph time. Jake and I didn't need to ask questions as we had morph clocks in our field of vision at all times. It was interesting to note that while the others were in morph, I could see their morph clocks as well, and was pleased to note that they were progressing at the same rate that Jake and I were, meaning they were on a three hour clock instead of the default two hour clock. More interesting, I couldn't see Jake's clock, and I would imagine that he couldn't see mine either. It seemed with both of us being Players, as the Game called us, we were responsible for ourselves.

With our other friends still being NPCs, they were unaware of the Game and thus we were made responsible for their morph times as well. Come to think of it, that's probably how Jake kept me from being trapped in hawk morph and brought me into the Game. Boy I hope the others can join us soon!

With barely ten minutes remaining on our morph clocks, we finally reached the crash site of the Dome ship. Jake had us surface just in case, had the other de-morph and then re-morph dolphin and then he and I morphed back with mere minutes to spare.

Taking a deep, deep breath, we dove and sought the entrance to the Dome ship.

Except before we could even approach it, a bunch of very bold letters appeared right in front of is, foreshadowing something that I really wasn't looking forward to.

-BOSS BATTLE-

[Where did that come from?] I asked Jake, moments before our echolocation picked up what was most likely going to be the main enemy in this Boss Battle.

[I don't even want to guess,] he replied.

[There is no possible way that thing is from this planet!] Marco screamed.

[Unfortunately,] Cassie remarked with a kind of calm detachment that I envied at the moment, [it is. It's _mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni_, the Colossal Squid. It's only ever been seen in the Southern Hemisphere, near Antartica and the Southern coasts of South America and Africa! This... this should be impossible!]

[Now we know why there were minimal requirements to enter this area,] Jake commented, before asking the rest of us, [Suggestions on ways to beat this thing?]

[Uh yeah, run away?] Marco suggested.

[A colossal squid's limbs are equipped with sharp hooks: some swivelling, others three-pointed. Their beaks are considered larger than a giant squid's, but at the same time it's tentacles are shorter. Scientists believe it to be a slow moving ambush predator with an extremely slow metabolic rate, and it feeds mostly on deep sea fish that use bioluminescence.] Cassie recited to us. [Based on those facts, it should leave us alone so long as we stay out of its range. Then again, those same facts say that this creature cannot be here right now. We're in the Northern hemisphere, off the coast of North America, and at a depth that this thing has never once been seen or heard of being at!]

[Isn't there something that usually eats these things?] I asked, feeling like I should already know the answer.

[Sperm whales,] Cassie replied. [And while those have been seen in the Northern Hemisphere before, they typically stay in the deep ocean. Not exactly good odds of one coming by to help us out here!]

So far, while we'd been discussing things, the squid had just stayed there, staring at us with it's big glassy round eyes, it's tentacles hanging limp beneath it. Curious as to why it would appear and then not attack, which is kind of what I'd expected from the Game at this stage, I decided to test something.

[Tobias! What are you doing?] Rachel cried out.

[Testing something,] I replied. [You guys stay back. I want to check on something.]

I swam deeper, moving closer to the squit until I saw the eye facing me swivel slowly in my direction. Then I just dove, moving no closer to it, trying to get under it. Sure enough, it was placed right in front of the airlock to the Dome Ship. We couldn't get in, Ax couldn't get out, not without going through the barbed tentacles the squid was sporting. I swam back up to the others, and then we had to surface as our breath was getting a bit short.

[It's right in front of the air lock. No way past it except through it.] I told them.

[Let's do it then!] Rachel cried, ready to dive back down and start wrangling with a colossal squid. On the way here, we'd had to team up against more than a few sharks and other hostile ocean creatures, not to mention more than a few manmade ones as well. We hadn't faced anything like this however.

[How about we just signal the guy we're here to get and ask him to join the Animorphs _without_ getting eaten by the thing that swallowed the Nautilus?] Marco suggested instead.

Jake and I shared a look, and although we were dolphins at the moment, we both knew what the look meant all the same. [It doesn't move unless you get within twenty meters of it,] I told them. Let's swim around and see if we can't get into the Dome some other way. We're not equipped to fight something like that. Not like this at any rate.]

[Oh come on! Bash it's eyeballs, ram it's big bulbous head, hit and run attacks!] Rachel enthusiastically offered several tactics. [Cassie said it was slow! We can run rings around that thing!]

[What's it going to be Fearless Leader?] Marco jibed. [Total insanity, or the smart thing to do?]

Jake was silent for a few seconds, and the replied, [I like the odds better when it's six on one, Rachel. Let's find a way to get our friend out of the Dome Ship first, and then if we have to, we'll tackle that thing. Spread out, keep your distance, and see if you can find an Andalite. Thought Speak should be able to penetrate, though only barely. Move out!]

A whole lot of swimming, and some adrenaline filled realizations that the squid truly was an _ambush_ predator, not to mention frustration-filled moments of convincing Ax to help us later, our team was complete once more, Ax accepted Jake as his Prince, and we were out of there. Except the squid wasn't about to let us leave. At that point, we went with Rachel's suggestion, hit and run tactics, aiming full speed for the eyes and it's bulbus head, Jake and me using our special attacks, not to mention combining everybody's echo location as some kind of Team Combo to stun the thing while Ax, as a tiger shark, tore into the thing's flesh as much as he could.

Jake was the first to get taken out, diving in to keep Cassie from getting snatched. He was bitten in half, darkening the water with his blood. Rachel and Marco went pretty quick after that, both charging headfirst for revenge. When they were dead, I lead Cassie and Ax out of there. It grabbed Ax from behind and me last. And then blackness consumed me after a brief, sharp pain in my back. The darkness was soon broken by glowing word...

-GAME OVER-

... And a voice grumbling, "Well that lasted about a day longer than last time!"

***END Chapter 8 "Special Challenges"***


	68. Animorphs: The Game AniBase 'Final'

(POV Switch: Third-Person)

Jake and Tobias found themselves alone in the empty space of the 'Game Menu', and barely said any words to each other, just shot each other a look and together they reached for and hit the option for New Game, as neither had yet found any signs of being able to save their progress. The moment they started re-entry, Jake said aloud, "Skip!"

... And suddenly they were walking along the street towards the Construction Site.

The moment they were past the fence, Marco and Rachel both stopped where they were and only Cassie was confused as to why they had.

"What the hell is going on here?" Marco asked, his voice dead-flat.

Cassie looked confused between all her friends, while Jake and Tobias were both smiling in relief. Rachel, however, was pissed.

"What the hell took you so long Jake? And how come Cassie is still Locked, huh? I would have figured she would be the first person you Unlocked!" she shouted at her cousin.

"Rachel? Uh, what are you talking about?" Cassie asked, still as confused as ever.

"You know about this?" Jake demanded, his voice turning hard.

"What exactly is going on here, Rachel?" Tobias asked, sounding... strange. Part stressed, part angry, part hopeful, part relieved, and all confused.

"He didn't show up to explain it to you, did he?" the blond growled out, arms crossed. "Bastard! Come down here and help me explain this already! JIM!"

"Who is Jim? And should Tobias be feeling jealous all of a sudden?" Marco remarked.

By this time, Elfangor's ship had come in for a landing right in front of the arguing Animorphs, interrupting them as it was rather difficult to speak over the noise of a landing space fighter. Once the door had opened, however, Prince Elfangor found himself face to face with a less than becoming sight that one wants to see in the potential future saviors of humankind.

"Why couldn't you just stay dead?" Jake shouted at his cousin.

"Why couldn't you guys keep it together after my 'death', huh?" Rachel shouted right back.

"What I want to know is what deal from Crayak you accepted this time, _Xena_?" Marco added to the argument.

"He's not Crayak! He's... something else!" she defended herself.

"Still, you accepted a deal and we were the ones left dealing with it," Tobias added his two cents. At that, Rachel actually backed down, looking shamefaced.

Glancing over at the waiting Elfangor, she mumbled, "Can we talk about this later?"

"Fine," Jake snapped, "But we _will_ be talking about it. Now, since you seem to know, how do I Unlock Cassie?"

Rachel snorted derisively. "Thought that would've been obvious. You've got to kiss her."

"Wh-WHAT?" both Cassie and Jake screamed at that.

"You've accessed the Anibase by now," she shrugged, "I mean if you've gotten the rest of us, you had to have in order to see the requirements for unlocking all the other characters. How else could you have unlocked me? Let alone, Marco!"

Jake and Tobias shared a look, but Jake was the one to say, "And how exactly would we have accessed this Anibase the Game keeps talking about? It's Locked when I'm on the loading screen, and I have yet to see anything that would let us access it, not even at Cassie's Barn!"

Rachel stared for a few moments, blinking.

[Excuse me, children] Elfangor interrupted. [We are out of time...]

"Damnit!" Rachel looked up. "No more time! Jake, get in there, get the Cube, shout when your out! Cassie, help Prince Elfangor morph! He's got a human morph, he needs it to get out of here. I'm going to save so we don't have to start blank again."

"Wait, what?" half of them shouted as she raced around to the other side of the ship.

The Blade ship and Bug Fighters were already visible in the night sky, so Jake didn't argue, rushing past Elfangor and immediately choosing the morphing cube and the Escape morphs. Before he could choose the weapon, however, he remembered Rachel saying something about Cassie helping Elfangor to morph. That stopped him cold. Could... could Prince Elfangor be... Unlocked as a _Player_?

Taking a chance on it, Jake hit the option for the Self Destruct instead, and suddenly he was outside again. "OK, I'm out!" Jake shouted, and suddenly the world was paused. In the sky above them, all those that were not frozen, which were only Jake, Tobias, Marco and Rachel, looked up to see the script;

[SAVE POINT]

_Would you like to save the game?_

[YES] or [NO]

Rachel screamed to the sky, "YES! SLOT ONE SELECT! YES!"

The sky flashed between a list of empty dialogue boxes, a question that would have formed but the Yes was chosen before it could print out any writing, and just like that the world resume.

"Jake! Jake! What-what is going on here? Jake, please tell me what's happening?" Cassie was shouting at him, running towards him.

Tobias caught the cube and the Escape Morphs before they dropped to the ground and quickly handed them to Elfangor. "We don't have a lot of time, Dad," Tobias said to his father.

[Tobias... I... how did you know?] The Andalite Prince exclaimed.

"No time to explain. Rachel!" he called.

"Jake, order her to calm down, it's your Special Ability," Rachel said as soon as she came back around.

"My _what_?" he yelled, still holding onto the crying girl that he'd once been so in love with.

"Your Special Ability, a... a power if you will, that every Player has. Yours is called _Leadership_. Basically, provided your Charisma and other stats are of a high enough level, you can order around any and all NPCs. Which, unfortunately, Cassie is right now."

"Whoa, Special Abilities?" Marco interrupted. "What did the rest of us get? Since you seem to know so much, Xena? By the way, great to see you alive again, Rachel."

She shot him her model-perfect smile and replied, "Thanks. Good to be alive again. Jake, cause he's the leader, got Leadership. Tobias, you got something called _Second Sight_, which basically gives you the ability to spot any and all Game Elements first and show them to the rest of us. I chose to get _Controlled Fury_, which is sort of like a Berserker mode that boosts my attack and defense power, but also lets me stay in control instead of going off..."

"Out of control, like you did that time you got split in two?" Marco inserted.

She shrugged and nodded, "Yeah."

"Anyway, Marco, I only had a second to look at everyone's stats, but your Special Ability was listed as _Hacker_, and was described as allowing you to interface with any technology, provided your Intelligence stats allowed for it. Ax got a similar Special Ability, but one keyed more towards alien tech while you could use anything on Earth. Cassie's Special Ability is the really useful one as it can be used even when she's still an NPC. She can _Assist_, which in the case of morphing abilities means she can get somebody out of a near-_Nothlit_ state, or even help someone who cannot morph on their own to morph fully."

The ships in the sky were coming close, but thankfully they hadn't started shining the red spotlights yet. Jake took a deep breath and pulled Cassie's head up from his chest until they were face to face. He softly kissed her on the lips, enough to stun her past her tears and then he ordered her, "Cassie, stop crying." Her tears immediately stopped and she was no longer sniffling either. "Cassie, put your hand on the blue cube with the rest of us. Hold the sphere that Elfangor will give to you in you hand and focus on it. And then _Assist_ Elfangor with morphing."

She nodded and moved forward as the others did to receive their morphing powers. Surprisingly, there were six spheres in the tube this time, rather than five. Cassie put her hands on Elfangor's shoulders and together they morphed into their respective Escape animals. Jake, in his Greyhound morph, lead the charge out into the darkness. By the time they'd reached the middle of the field, the Blade Ship and Bug Fighters had landed... right in time for Elfangor's ship to explode, wiping the entire Construction Site off the face of the planet, as well as everything half a mile around, above, and _below_ it.

The first hint that something more was wrong was when the sky started turning all kinds of weird colors and a harsh wind started blowing, or rather sucking back towards the decimated Construction Site.

[The Time Matrix] Elfangor said, his Thought Speak filled with dread.

[Whoa] Rachel said, looking back from where they'd come. A psychedelic tornado had started up and was devouring everything around it. [Really glad I saved the game all of a sudden.]

Before anybody else could say or do anything, the Time Storm expanded at an unbelievable rate and then their world whited out... only to be filled by the blackness of space and the words, [GAME OVER] moments later.

"..."

"That was new," Jake commented from where he lay on the 'floor', staring up at the stars.

"Whoa, _this_ is the loading screen?" Rachel exclaimed, looking all around.

"Yeah, not a whole lot to look at, especially since most of the features are still locked on the loading screen over there," Tobias commented.

[Prince Jake, are you all right?] Ax asked.

"..." Jake slowly became aware that everyone was staring at him now. Slowly, he sat up and answered, "Not really, Ax. Not really." He got to his feet and turned to face his friends. They were all there. _All_ of them.

[Aximili? What are you...? The Ellimist, he showed me that you would be part of this, but... how is this possible?] Prince Elfangor was there too.

[P-Pr-Prince El-Elfangor! I... I... I'm terribly sorry for...] Ax started to bow, but his brother canted forward and stopped that from happening. And then he did a very human thing that nobody had expected. He hugged his younger brother.

[I had thought you dead when the dome entered the atmosphere! My brother! And... and my son who knows me... How is this possible?]

"Is he from in-game, or is he real?" Jake asked Rachel, voice neutral and quite frankly so far past his weird limit that he just didn't give a shit anymore.

"He's like us now, which makes him _real_!" Rachel snarked at her cousin. "That what Jim does, he takes people, us in this case, from the nanosecond before their dead and replaces them with a life-like clone that doesn't have a real soul. He kinda tricked me, but hey, we all get a second chance here! And speaking from personal experience, I'd rather have that second chance than none at all!"

"Who is this 'Jim' guy anyway?" Tobias asked her.

"It's what he calls himself," she shrugged. "Game Master. G.M. Jim for short. And I kind of expected him to show up and explain it to you Jake the samw way he explained it to me!"

"We'll get to that in a minute," Jake held up his hand. "First things first, show us how to access the Anibase already! I've had the feeling for the past couple games that it's the key to making sense of all of this, but it's locked out form the Loading Screen!"

"Seriously?" Rachel snorted and stepped up to said 'screen' and reached out her hand to touch the -Help- option and then immediately chose the Anibase option that came up from 'inside the Domeship'. Suddenly, there was a buzzing sound that reverberated throughout the space and an error screen came up, saying;

-**ERROR! ANIBASE CAN ONLY BE ACCESSED DURING GAMEPLAY OR FROM THE PAUSE MENU! SELECT NEW GAME OR LOAD A SAVED GAME TO ACCESS!**-

"See?" Jake crossed his arms expectantly.

Rachel frowned and growled. Not a regular growl, however. She'd begun morphing into a Grizzly Bear, and the growl soon became the roar of a bear. A bear that as soon as she'd finished morphing, grew another hundred pounds in size, it's hair turned a glowing yellow-gold and sparks of electricity started flying off of her.

"I'm guessing that's her _Controlled Fury_ Special Ability she was talking about earlier," Marco guessed, backing away from the enraged 'super-bear'. "Very impressive visual effects though," he added after a beat.

[GET DOWN HERE OR ELSE YOU SMALLVILLE-WANNABE!] Rachel raged, swiping her glowing claws through the error message. What was even more surprising was that they actually connected and 'broke' said error message!

"OK, OK, enough already! I'm here!" Jim exclaimed from amidst the group of players. He was still appearing as Tom Welling from Smallville, although this time he was at least dressed in the all black ensemble from the later seasons.

Rachel immediately stopped glowing and started to de-morph.

"So you're the one responsible for all this?" Marco accused.

"Guilty as charged," Jim shrugged, hands behind his back.

"Why?" Jake demanded to know.

"Why don't you ask your girlfriend about that," Jim smiled as everyone's attention turned to Cassie. It was only then that everyone noticed that she hadn't gotten up with the rest of them, nor even when Jake stood up. She was still on the ground, hugging her knees and rocking back and forth, muttering things that no one could understand.

"Cassie?" Jake was immediately by her side, reaching for her. She flinched away, causing him to draw back.

"Cassie? Are-are you OK?" Rachel knelt next to her cousin, restraining herself from doing more than that.

Jim walked up and stood over them. He snapped his fingers and just like that, there were two Cassies. One looked perfectly normal, the other curled up even more and stopped making any noises whatsoever. That one soon disappeared right before their eyes.

"..." Normal-Looking Cassie just stood there for a moment, taking a complete circuit of the space before asking, "OK, what just happened?"

"What do you remember?" Jim asked her before anyone else could say anything.

"..." Cassie frowned and kept her mouth shut, staring at him expectantly.

"Seriously, what is the last think that you remember? I need to know if I'm going to have to segment your psyche again because you went insane from wanting to kill yourself to get away from the One," he pointed out.

At the name of their unknown enemy, Cassie flinched and looked about ready to go back to the fetal position muttering nonsense. Thankfully, she held herself together long enough to answer, "I remember my plan to do just as you said. I remember the decade I was trapped as one of... one of _it's_ minions, one of it's playthings. And I remember the fifty years of war that was started by the traitors standing behind me!"

"Wait, what?" Marco blurted out.

Cassie spun on them, righteous fury in her eyes. "You started a war! You went looking for Ax and you trespassed into the One's domain! We _weren't ready_! It considered that trespass as a declaration of war by all other species in the galaxy and we had no warning!"

"I thought you said that it was _because_ of them doing that the rest of the universe had a chance against the Unifiers?" Rachel shouted at Jim.

"Unifiers?" Cassie repeated, now looking confused between Jim and her old friends.

"They weren't called that for another hundred years or more after your death, Cassie," Jim casually answered her. "And while you won't remember it that way, your... 'suicide' actually resulted in prolonging the war another thousand years or more. By quite simply maintaining the status quo. At least that's how history sees it."

"You're... not like the Ellimist, are you?" Marco hazarded a guess.

"I'm more like the Ellimist than any of you are," Jim smiled and shrugged.

"But you're not like him. Or Crayak, are you?" Jake pointed out.

"What is going on here?" Cassie finally demanded.

[I too would appreciate an answer to that question,] Elfangor stepped forward, Ax at his side. Which just so happened to put the young Andalite right between Jake and Elfangor.

"We're playing a game," Jim answered, before he briefly flickered away and back again, "A video game. And by fully unlocking your original team plus one other Player, you have now unlocked the Anibase." A chime sounded throughout the empty space, and a new option appeared on the menu. It said -ANIBASE- and was stylized the same as the other options.

"Why couldn't they access it before?" Rachel wanted to know.

"That wasn't the Anibase, Rachel, that was the Tutorial. The Anibase was locked until all Players and at least one other had been Unlocked. Shall we? I assure you, it's a far more comfortable setting than this to hold a discussion in."

"And we'll actually get some answers? Not riddles and half-truths that we have to figure out for ourselves?" Jake confirmed.

"I will truthfully and fully answer any and all questions. I do, however reserve the right to not volunteer any information I feel you may not be ready for."

"What did you do to Cassie?" Tobias asked.

"Like that," Jim gave them a sour smile. "I segmented her psyche. I'm sure most of you remember the incident when Miss Berenson here morphed a starfish and said starfish was cut into pieces? For a while you had two Rachels running around. One of which was her initial, core personality, and the other was the... developing berserker violence-loving persona she displayed on numerous Animorph missions. It's like that, only more fine-tuned."

"How do you even know about that?"

"I'll be happy to answer that... in the Anibase," with that said, Jim flickered away, this time not to return.

"Fine," Jake growled and turned and waved his hand at the Anibase option. To everyone else's surprise, despite that he was no where close to it, it selected and everything around them... faded away...

...To reveal a massive interior that reminded the Animorphs of a similar design they had once seen before, but subtly different. It was like the Pemalite ship that they had once visited, except that it looked like it was designed by the US Military, as far as general appearance went.

"What the...?" Rachel exclaimed. "What was the deal with all the screens that you had me go through then, huh?"

"Rachel, Rachel, Rachel," Jim's voice echoed from practically all around the with no single source for his voice. "Did you really think that the Anibase was just going to be a bunch of touch screens that were only accessible from Cassie's Barn? The Anibase is the interior of my ship."

"Ship?" they all, save the two Andalites, repeated.

"Yes, ship. It's how I rescued you, how you're all still alive, and furthermore, it's also how you are the ages that you _are_ rather than the ages that you _were_. You are currently on one of the few existing _Space/Time Ships_ in the universe. Called a Continuum Ship for short."

"So... what are you? Who are you? The captain of the ship?" Jake asked the empty air.

"There is no captain. He died a long time ago anyway," Jim answered. "I am the ship's AI. You've all been existing as digital frames inside my Core up until now. By accessing the Anibase function, well, you essentially allowed me to create physical bodies for you. You are very real right now, in the real world, at a point in the future that none of you would be able to recognize."

[How is this possible?] Elfangor asked.

Ax, however, had a very different question, [Why have you done this? You are either an extremely cruel creation, or you are messing with the laws of causality, risking a space/time fissure of unknowable consequences!]

"What he said!" Marco agreed.

"Go to the window," was Jim's short reply.

A hundred yards or so to their left, a panel of the wall started to lift up. They weren't even halfway there when they saw enough to know what the point was. It was the solar system. Or rather a solar system. No way to tell which one specifically. Until Jim told them, right as they reached the window, "This is the universe."

"[WHAT?]" they all screamed out loud.

"I'm, unfortunately, not kidding. Four molten rock planets, half of them half-covered in ice, a red giant star, and an asteroid field. The last star. The last true planets that can even be called that. As infinitely vast as the universe... that the Space/Time Continuum is... you are now looking at the last of it. Matter and lower forms of energy still exist, but not enough to create stars, not enough to sustain life. I've been from one end of the Continuum and back again. I'm currently on my second such trip throughout existence, and while I've been traveling for billions of years already, I haven't even gotten a tenth of the way through. Nevertheless, it's confirmed."

Jim paused and allowed them to accept the gravity of what he was telling them, "This is the last star. These are the last planets. And they'll be gone in another hundred million years. I've figured that my journey can wait long enough to record the last star going supernova. If it goes supernova. It will most likely collapse and turn into a black hole, taking the planets and asteroids along with it, like all the other stars did."

"Why?"

"That is a loaded question," Jim replied. "Simple, straightforward answer; Yes, Aximili, I _am_ trying to affect causality. Because once you lot actually succeed in my simulations, then I will send you back into the _real_ past and pray that you can change things enough that this star will go supernova, and maybe others will have to."

"You want the start to blow up? Why?" Marco asked.

"Because then life will actually have a chance again. That's how it gets started, don't you know? Stars explode and everything that they were made of spreads out into the cosmos around them. Maybe start a few other fires along the way."

[Why not make it explode?] Elfangor asked, [If you have the capability of pulling us from the moments before our deaths, then surely you have the means of artificially exploding a star?]

Jim was silent, not because he hadn't heard the question, but clearly because he didn't consider it to be one worth answering.

Jake, however, saw differently. "Answer the question."

"If I did that... it would accomplish nothing. The star-matter would 'self-digest' if you allow the turn of phrase. The limitations of my design, I'm afraid. The way that I explode a star is by making it implode."

"Who designed you then? Maybe you could bring _them_ here and play games with them!" Rachel shouted.

"I was designed and created by the descendants of the human race."

"Really?" they all perked up at that.

"I said they were descendants of the human _race_, not your descendants specifically. Besides, after the Unifiers won, a lot of cross-breeding happened. You could just as easily say that I was created by the descendants of the Yeerks, the Andalites, the Hork Bajir, and the Skrit-Na too."

"So why change things? And why us specifically?" Tobias questioned.

"Jake Berenson and his team were the first interaction alien species had with the human race, and it was the human race that held out the longest against the Unifiers. You are the very definition of a turning point in history. Cassie was right. Nobody was prepared for the One and what it brought to the galaxy at large. Once I'm through with you, however, you will be."

END.


	69. Vampire Slayer

**The Vampire Slayer:****Buffy and Willow**

(_Author's Note: This story *__**used**__* to be posted here on FF Net, and was in fact my only, initially speaking that is, M-Rated fic that deserved the rating. Up until 2003 that is, when they took it down. I'm now hiding it here in my "Fantasies", the complete story btw. So that way I'll know if anyone is paying attention. Also, for the record, I __***BASED***_ _this story off a a B/W shipper fic by another author, but he wrote a rather... poor and highly incomplete version of Section 1 on it. My original intention was to just 'expand' on it and maybe get in touch with the author and see if he, or she, wanted to collaborate, or even just ask them what they thought. Then they, well, the author pretty much disappeared. Can't even find the original story I based this off of, and the site I found it on was taken down years ago. To put it in perspective, this was before Steve Pantovich had even posted Wandererverse online yet, let alone got other authors involved with it. Anyway, just thought everyone should be informed, just in case.)_

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy Productions own all characters and the 'vampire' and 'Slayer' concepts depicted below. The story is based off another Fanfic Author's story which was simply entitled "The _Vampire_ Slayer". Mine is entitle "The Vampire Slayer: Buffy and Willow". :p

Summary: Buffy is turned and immediately goes and turns Willow, both relish in the loss of their inhibitions and make plans to torment their former friends and loved ones, ironically the only ones that could actually stop them. Rated M for violence, gore, sex, lesbianism, and casual conversations regarding sadism, torture and murder.

**Section 1**

Willow was lying down on her bed, studying a book on witchcraft and spells. It was almost 11 o'clock at night on a Tuesday, and despite that she was usually with Oz or the 'Scooby's' at the Bronze, or maybe even out on patrol with Buffy, tonight she was just catching up on her magic. Though with the recent trouble with Faith, Buffy had been spending more and more time with the second Slayer, and even seemed to have found a new best friend in the intimidating, yet anti-social brunette. Willow was lost in her thoughts when she heard the soft rap on her French windows, and immediately hopped off her bed, padding barefoot over to the second story doors.

"Will, it's me." Buffy said, and Willow opened the door, a wide smile on her face. She was surprised, but pleased, she had missed her best friend lately.

"Buffy!" she exclaimed. "What brings you here?"

"Just wanted to see my bestest bud of all my buds." Buffy replied cryptically.

Willow was touched. She'd been feeling a little neglected lately, with all of Buffy's Slayer-time with Faith, and just as she'd decided to say something about it to Buffy, here she was.

"Come in, come in," Willow said, ushering the blonde Slayer inside.

"Why, thank you, Will. So nice of you to invite me in." Buffy said, placing a strange emphasis on the word "invite".

Willow's expression deadened, and her mouth dropped open in horror. "Oh, god, no!" she exclaimed, taking in her friend's unnatural paleness... and the small trickle of blood by her jaw.

"You got a little..." she gestured to the side of her mouth, and Buffy swiped at her own mouth, wiping the blood away.

"See, Will. That's why I love you. Always looking out for me, taking care of me. Even when I'm a bloodsucking fiend about to kill you." Buffy responded with an unnatural and unnerving smile on her face. Yet despite her words, her tone gave the impression that the statement was total sarcasm.

"Oh, Buffy," Willow sighed the Slayer's name. "What happened?"

Buffy realized she actually wasn't surprised by Willow's concern; she'd somehow known that becoming a vampire wouldn't stop Willow's adorable habit of mothering her. That's why she'd come here, instead of to Giles or Angel, who would have undoubtedly attempted to contain her until they could perform the gypsy _Soul Curse_. Whereas Willow, dear, sweet Willow, only wanted to sympathize. The thought of giving Buffy back her soul never entered her mind.

Buffy sat down on Willow's bed and smiled self-deprecatingly.

"I screwed up," she said. "Big time. I thought there were only three vamps, and when I staked the third; the fourth one jumped me, drained me, and forced me to drink. I tried not to, but I was so tired, and I couldn't hold my breath forever, so I opened my mouth, and though I tried to spit it out, there was too much. I swallowed some, barely more than a drop, but it was more than enough. And when I woke up, I was a vampire."

"What happened to your sire? I thought fledglings had to obey their sire unquestioningly. They just don't have the strength... of body or of will – to, well, defy their maker."

"Yeah, well, I thought my sire was a jerk, so I snapped his neck. The stupid idiot hadn't even got rid of my stakes; I guess he didn't know I was the Slayer. Otherwise he would never have turned me. I found this book in Giles' private collection once, about a Slayer who became a vampire. She was so powerful, not even the strongest, oldest, smartest vampires could defeat her. But she was mad, you know, crazy mad, not angry mad, and she was too much of a liability. So the Watchers made a deal with the vampires, and together they managed to destroy her. It's one of the greatest scandals of the Watcher's Council, hardly anyone knows about it. I mean, negotiating with vampires? When the main reason they manage to keep such control over the Slayer is because they make her believe vampires are just evil, soulless demons that have to be eradicated? I wonder what they'll do when they find out I'm a vampire."

"Well, they won't find out. We won't tell them." Willow sounded determined to protect her friend. And she was. If she had to, she would fight every single vampire and watcher in the world to protect the… well, the demon that was currently her best friend.

"That's real sweet Will. But you forgot one thing." Buffy stated.

"What's that, Buffy?" Willow asked.

"I'm the most powerful vampire on earth. Heck, I'm probably more powerful than most of the demons around. So why do I need to hide from the Watchers?" Buffy smirked evilly. "I'm gonna wipe'em out. All of them."

"B-buffy? Even Giles?" Willow stammered fearfully.

"Oh, no. Not Giles. I'm saving him for you." Buffy kept the unnerving smirk on her pale face. Buffy then growled and vamped out. Willow shrieked and backed away, terror-stricken.

"Will, you never quite figured it out, did you? Vampires don't get friendly with mortals. It just isn't done. But if you were a vampire... I bet we'd be best of buds again. Forever."

She advanced on Willow.

"B-but why, Buffy? Why me? Why not go after Xander or Giles... or Faith? I'm sure she'd be a perfect partner in crime, especially since she'd be as strong as you. You two could rule the world. Why change me?"

"What makes you think I'm not just changing you _first_?" Buffy grabbed Willow by the throat, bringing her close until they were face to face.

"But I'll tell you why I picked you. Or rather, why I didn't pick Xander or Giles or Faith. Xander's way too boring, too bland. Can you imagine him as a vampire? He wouldn't be anything special, just another evil bloodsucker. Not exactly my choice for the person I wanna spend eternity with. And Giles? Who knows how that would turn out? I could get a psycho vampire version of Ripper - fun, probably, but he'd get tiresome after a while. The dark streak is more of a novelty than something on which to base a long-standing relationship - and I _mean_ long-standing, we're talking _centuries_ here. And what if he was still Giles, only dead? Being with a librarian for a millennia? Please!"

"I guess there's Angel or Spike, but Angel would only want to give me my soul back, and Angelus would only want to destroy the world or get in my pants. And Spike? Like I'd want the psycho hoe's leftovers. So that just leaves you and Faith. And while Faith was a blast when I was human, that bad girl attitude just doesn't impress a demon. Besides, if she was as strong as me, you really think she'd want to be submissive to me? She couldn't beat me, of course, but it would get tedious after a century or two, always watching my back around her in case she got ideas above her station. Besides, really, there's only ever been one person I'd want to spend my un-life with. You, Willow."

"Wow. I'm really flattered. And incredibly, mind-numbingly, terrified."

"I love you, Will. I always have. I just regret that I never got the chance to tell you when I was alive. But you know what they say?" Buffy asked as she slowly moved her head, and therefore fangs closer to Willow's neck.

"What do they say?" Willow asked, fascinated despite her current state.

"Say it with eternal life," Buffy replied, lunging in for the bite.

Willow gasped. "Buffy? I love you too," she said as she felt her best friend drain the life out of her.

"I know, Will," Buffy whispered through bloodstained lips. "Now drink, baby, and when you wake up your Buffy's gonna have a nice surprise for you." Buffy glanced over to the body slumped outside Willow's room as Willow sucked eagerly at her wrist.

"Loser," she muttered at Faith's unconscious form. She let her human guise return as Willow finished drinking the unholy blood from her wrist. Buffy settled Willow's body back on the bed, watching her redheaded friend tenderly as she spasmed a few times, with death convulsions. Finally she was still and Buffy settled down to wait for the _Change_. When Willow opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw was her best friend, the woman she loved more than anything, kneeling over her.

"How you feeling?" Buffy asked with a smile, bending down to brush Willow's lips with her own.

Willow smiled, hardly believing Buffy Summers was actually kissing her. "Better than ever," she replied. "But...hungry."

"Mmmm. I know, babe. I got take out." She helped Willow sit, and gestured to the dark-haired girl trembling in the corner. Faith had regained consciousness during Willow's change, and Buffy had to nearly beat her to death before making sure that the brown-haired Slayer would not try to escape, or could for that matter.

"You really mean it? I can have her?" Willow sounded like a two year old who just got everything she wanted for her birthday and Christmas all at once.

"Baby, you can have anything - or anybody - you want. Just say the word." Buffy replied.

"Does that mean...can I kill Cordelia?"

"Oh, yeah. But first, eat. You don't wanna maim and kill on an empty stomach."

Buffy watched fondly as her beloved child stalked over to the Slayer in the corner, admiring her lithe grace. "Baby, when you're done we really gotta get you a new outfit," Buffy commented.

Willow turned to face her, yellow eyes glowing with an unnatural light beneath a heavily ridged forehead, and spoke through a mouth filled with fangs. "Will it have leather?"

"Oh, you can pretty much count on it." Buffy promised, and Willow turned to her meal with a self-satisfied smirk.

"See, Faith. This is why you'll always be second. Buffy's the real Slayer...and you're just a pale imitation." Once more she paused. "Buffy? If I kill her, there'll just be another one."

"So we'll kill her too." Buffy answered distractedly, having found a hand mirror and was admiring her non-reflection. It was always something that had…fascinated was too strong a word, puzzled her.

"Yeah, but won't it get boring after a while? Having to kill Slayers all the time? Cause there'll be two of them, you know? Now that you're dead too."

"I hadn't thought of that. See, I knew there was a reason besides your beauty why I wanted you. You're just so damn smart, babe." Buffy got off the bed, and stood by her Willow. She put on her fangs and then kissed the pale redhead. Willow flushed with pleasure...although it was a metaphorical blush. She didn't have any blood to blush with...yet.

"Okay, don't kill her. We'll just chain her up somewhere. That oughta give us sixty-odd years Slayer free. So long as we make sure the other Slayers don't get too uppity." She put her human face back on and let her lover go to her meal.

Faith shuddered and tried to pull away, but Willow was hungry. She growled and sank her teeth into Faith's neck, nearly swooning with delight at the rich, warm blood that coursed through her. Regretfully, she released Faith's neck before the girl died and stood up.

"So what now, Mistress?" she asked, _now_ flushed with the fresh blood.

"Well, I thought we might pay a visit to some old friends," Buffy suggested. "Starting with my dearest watcher."

Giggling wickedly, Willow and Buffy linked arms and headed out into the night. Of course Buffy wanted to be sure that Faith couldn't escape, even if the young girl did regain consciousness from her severe blood loss.

That night, the term, "Paint the town red," suddenly took on a very literal, and dangerous meaning.

Section 2

On Main street, you rarely ever saw vampires. Actually, you never saw vampires on Main street. The only places you _saw_ vampires was the place where you were about to die. So Buffy and Willow, both very attractive females, walking arm in arm down Main street may not have been the most unusual thing to see, seeing them both vamped out while they were, was.

As soon as anybody got close enough to see what they were, or to see their faces at all, they immediately ran away as fast as they could. Much to Willow's displeasure; Main street was totally empty and devoid of humans in less than five minutes.

"Good reaction," Buffy commented as they passed the abandoned coffee shop.

"Maybe for, you, but I'm still hungry. You did say I could have anybody, right?" Willow asked, her yellow demonic eyes glowing with the night's mischief.

"Anybody, babe. Just name them, or even point them out, and you'll have 'em in less than two shakes of a Slayer's stake." Buffy replied.

Willow giggled. "You and your euphemisms," Willow held Buffy a little closer. Suddenly an idea struck her. She slowly began to steer them towards the Bronze. Something that her evil vampire double, well duplicate might be a better term now, had tried to do when she was here was take over the Bronze. Willow planned on eventually doing the same thing, but for this evening, she had plans for her _**ex**_-boyfriend, who happened to be the lead in the band that always played at the Bronze.

As they turned onto the street where they could easily see the lighted sign of the Bronze, Buffy knew where they were going, but was somewhat at a loss as for why they were here. They only had so many hours of the night and she wanted to take care of Giles before he could begin to suspect anything. That and it was getting near the end of her scheduled patrol.

"Will, what are we doing here? I told you, you could have Giles, and we don't want to make him suspicious by being late for dinner." Buffy smiled at her humor.

"Oh, I know, and I love you for that, but there's something, or rather somebody, that I want to take care of first. You don't mind, do you?" Willow asked, almost pleadingly cute.

That face was almost as irresistible as the "Resolve face". Buffy just chuckled to her self, and lead the way. Not wanting to attract too much attention too soon, the two young vampires looked human and were let in by the bouncer at the front door. They were regulars.

The Bronze was crowded, as usual, and Willow could hardly control herself as she saw all the humans, who to her eyes were happy meals on legs. Up on stage, the Dingoes were playing, and Oz was on guitar just outside of the spotlight, like he usually was. Buffy knew exactly what Willow was planning on doing.

A look was exchanged between the two of them, and in that moment a plan had been formed and agreed upon. The two split up, Buffy heading to the upstairs where most of the sound and lighting equipment were controlled, and Willow out to the front of the Dance area.

She was still wearing a long cotton dress, mostly maroon with flower patterns, but she had taken off the matching white sweater. So now, her pale arms and paler shoulders were fully exposed, and almost seemed to glow in the mass of sweaty bodies. The contradiction of her white on white pale skin with her dark and vibrant reddish orange hair drew the attention of several men throughout the room. The least of which, Oz was not left out of.

Once she was out in front, with the entire crowd dancing and gyrating to the music behind her, Willow looked straight at Oz, and smiled. This was no ordinary smile, either. It was a wild, mischievous, sensual, and suggestive smirk that a Nymph would blush at. For Oz, as controlled and quiet as he always was, he just grinned back and kept his eyes on her, never once losing his place or the beat of the music he was playing. Until Willow started to dance.

It wasn't the kind of dancing that Faith was into, nor that much of a slow dance, but its effects were all the same. Still smiling, uh…smirking, at Oz, Willow began to move her hips and legs and then feet a certain way. Then, still moving, she moved her hands down over her hips, down her thighs, and then reversed course when they came to the knees. Holding onto the dress as her hands moved upwards, the hem, which had been mid-calf, slowly slid up to just below her waist as her hands stopped just below her breasts. Looking at Oz with an almost feral intensity, she dropped the dress back down and repeated the process twice more. Oz never once looked away, and only slowed in his playing twice, but never bad enough to mess up the whole song.

As the song came to a close, suddenly a spotlight was focused on Willow. She was facing the stage, still gazing at Oz, and she never stopped moving, though she did stop pulling her dress up. Everyone seemed to naturally part away from her, forming a sort of semi-circle around her and the stage, with more than five feet all around her.

She was pure seduction, and pure innocence all rolled into one moving figure. Despite his boasts and even truths of Oz's self-control factor, no man with a pulse, and even many without, could not look upon this fiery beauty and not approach her, especially when she stared at him like that and he "claimed" to be her boyfriend. The band, no one was lost on the tension between the guitarist and the cute redhead up front, took five, and the backup singers, a.k.a. "Slow-dance singers" came on stage and began another set.

Oz came down front and made sure to give Willow a very thorough kiss, she deserved it. Ever since they had finally, emphasis on _finally_, broken down and made love last week, there had hardly been a moment when they weren't kissing. Now was hardly any different.

Except something was different. Willow kissed him back with an intensity unlike herself, almost outright assaulting him with her mouth and tongue. Then there was something different about the way she felt. Her lips and mouth, which were usually warm and very inviting, were slightly cooler and was somehow different. He couldn't place it, but he suddenly pulled out of the kiss when he felt Willow's hands suddenly firmly planted on his butt. He stiffened a little, and she immediately removed her hands and put on a pouty face. He was putty, and she knew it.

As the slow song continued, something of Alanis Morrisette without the tempo, he noticed that Willow was directing them to the center of the dance floor, and the spotlight seemed to move with them. They stayed there for several moments before Oz spoke, in his (as always) unnervingly calm voice.

"Hey," he said in greeting, and then lightly kissing her still pouty lips.

She smiled, though it seemed different from her usual smile that she always gave him, and responded, "Hey," and then kissing him back.

"So, what brings my beautiful Willow down here tonight? I thought you had to study for a big final or something like that?" Oz asked.

Willow just smiled…smirked…well, uh, actually she just gave him a look that said "Fool, your breakfast to me and you don't even know it, and you want to know why I'm here?" but he read it as, "Silly Oz, I wanted to see you. I love you."

"Oh, I got bored with that. I wanted to have some fun before graduation, and where better, and who better, than to spend tonight with my boyfriend at the best club in town." She said it in an almost sultry tone, but it was still "Willow".

"The only club in town." Oz pointed out. "Yeah, so?" Willow responded.

The songs had changed without either noticing, and both were still in the middle of the dance floor with the spotlight on the two of them. They still had a five-foot radius of no people around them, but Oz could care less about that with Willow in his arms. The fear and arousal that she smelled in the air were actually turning Willow on. She wasn't surprised or worried that some fear was coming off Oz, but she was a little bit upset that it wasn't _of_ her, so much as _for_ her.

After the song changed again, this time from slow and romantic, to slow, erotic, and steamy. The spotlight was still on them, and Willow smiled a secret smile that Oz both knew and had no clue what meant. She began to dance again, though it was far more sensual than he had ever felt her be before, well outside of her bed or his van anyway. No, he thought as the song continued for another few moments, he had _never_ felt her be this sensual before.

Suddenly both he and the redhead became aware of a presence behind him. He half-turned and saw Buffy standing there, in the gap of people. She smiled the same secret smile that Willow had, and came up behind him, and then grabbed onto Willow's shoulders and arms. With him in between them.

"Uh, hi…b-Buffy…" he said haltingly as he felt her strong curves come up solidly against his backside. Willow didn't seem to notice, or didn't care that her boyfriend, her lover, was being felt up, and was being allowed to feel up her best friend. "Hey Buffy," Willow said in a way that almost sounded like an actual physical caress of the other woman.

"Hi Willow," the blond replied in an identical fashion. She looked at Oz, they were all kind of grinding to the slow music, especially Willow and Buffy, and nodded briefly and said in a flat tone, "Hey Oz."

"Um…" was all he could say.

"Oh, you don't mind if I cut in? Do you Will?" Buffy asked as though Oz wasn't even there.

"Well, I don't mind if you _come_ in, but I would mind if you cut in. I don't want Oz to feel left out." Willow answered, putting unusual emphasis on the word "come". This did not get past Oz.

"No, um, if you two want to dance, I, uh, I've got to get back on stage…you know…" he was beginning to lose his cool demeanor, he knew something wasn't right. Willow knew what could have been going through his head, and Buffy knew that he was beginning to suspect. They both smiled.

"Nonsense," Buffy responded, pushing herself closer to Willow, and therefore deeper into Oz, and moving her hands to Willow's waist. Willow in turn moved her hands from Oz's shoulders to just on either side of Buffy's breasts. "We want you to be comfortable. After all, your Willow's boyfriend lover, and I am her best girlfriend lover. Though we haven't actually 'bonked' yet, I'm sure we'll change that real soon, right lover?" She was interrupted by Willow leaning further into Oz, and moved her head around his to eagerly kiss Buffy's mouth.

Needless to say, Oz was a little more than freaked, but he still managed to keep what remained of his cool. Buffy continued after breaking away from Willow's kiss, "So, you're just going to have to get used to situations like these. Besides, if I smell correctly, you aren't entirely hating this, are you?" There was something about the way that Buffy said that, not just _what_ she said, but how she said it. Like it was some sarcastic joke that she knew he wouldn't get. Plus, what she said was the truth. With her and Willow's pelvic bones touching his pelvic bones, and constantly rubbing back and forth in ways that could get a hard on off of a real corpse, he couldn't deny that part of him was enjoying it. But his survivor instincts told him something was really wrong, and told, no…commanded him to get out and away from these two he once called friends. It only got louder as he realized that they were holding him so tightly between them that he couldn't escape, not even if his life depended on it, which it did.

"What's going on?" he asked, still unnaturally calm, as that most guys would have fainted, if not from terror then from passion, by now. Buffy, not exactly known for her patience, looked at Willow with a question in her eyes. Willow, who despite enjoying this immensely, was beginning to get a little bored, and nodded to the unspoken question.

Abruptly, just before the song ended, Buffy and Willow disengaged from Oz, and forcefully taking his arms, led him to the back Exit. To everyone else it looked like Oz was the ladies man for the night, having two beautiful sexy women dance with him, and on both his arms as he escorted them out. Applause rang out as the left the club. Mostly from the men, but a few whistles from a couple ladies.

Once they were outside, Buffy was pleased to see that no one was in the alley, human or otherwise. They finally let go of Oz, more like throwing him into a pile of garbage that had been dumped in the lighted corners. He struggled to his feet and asked them once again, all masks cast aside as the terror washed over him in wave after wave. "What's going on?"

Buffy stepped into the light, a few feet from him, and her face morphed to one with a heavier and furrowed brow without eyebrows, yellow/black almost glowing eyes, and sharper teeth that showed despite her still having her mouth closed. Oz's terror spiked to over double what he had been feeling. Then Willow stepped out of the shadows, a few feet away from Buffy, her face already demonic. When Oz saw, and recognized what had happened to her, he begun to experience a fear that human's of this century simply do not know. The last humans to have had fear, much more, _reason_ to have such fear would be considered to be of a time when man was not the greatest predator ever to inhabit the earth, but would be considered to be the third lowest creature on the food chain, doing only better than plants and amoeba. He also felt an intense sadness. The woman that he loved was dead, and not only dead, but far worse, eternally dead.

"Willow…" he croaked. She smiled…smirked the way that she had been all evening, and he finally understood what it meant. It was a predators' smirk. When it has its prey right where it wants it, and both it and the prey know that there is nothing that could save the weaker creature.

Like a switch had been thrown, Oz's terror overtook his actions and he ran between the two to the end of the alley as fast as he could. Buffy and Willow watched him for a second or two, exchanged a glance that told them which would chase after him. Buffy won, or lost, it depends on how you look at it I guess.

She moved with vampire upon Slayer speed, and easily caught up with Oz before he was even so much as ten feet away from the opening of the alley. She threw him back, and he literally flew to Willow's feet. She easily picked him up, and slammed him against the wall. He was gibbering now, as most humans would in their last panic-stricken moments. It was beyond pathetic.

Deciding to take pity on him, which was the first and one of the last times that Willow the vampire ever took pity on _**anyone**_, (I repeat **AN-NY-O-NE**), and she bit into his neck rather messily and harshly. He was dead a few seconds after she began to feed. His last sounds were similar to that a dog makes when it's afraid and hurt, kind of a whimpering, yelping, animal sound.

Buffy came up shortly after his body had slumped to the ground, very and quite dead. "You didn't save any for me." She commented, a slight pout in her voice. She regained her human features and looked at the blood-smeared face of the vampire in front of her. Before Willow could offer any response, she found herself in a tight embrace with the blonde vampire-Slayer and being kissed like she had never been kissed before. It was one of hunger, pure animal hunger that made her feel primal and alive (metaphorically speaking), and opened up an emotional floodgate to the demon inside the redheaded witch.

First to understand, demons cannot love. They are physically, emotionally, psychologically incapable of even understanding the concept of love. Unless, they are half-human. Like vampires. And hybrids ofcourse. Anyway, the demon that took the place of Willow's soul was suddenly flooded with emotions and feelings and reactions that it just did not know how to handle. Willow's body, Willow's soul, and everything Willow had, loved Buffy. Ever since she had sat down and spoken with her at lunch that fateful day, Willow had been in love with the blond from L.A. who happened to have a reputation for blowing up her school. So just because Willow's soul left, didn't mean that the love left, oh no, quite to the contrary. It somehow seemed stronger than ever, perhaps because the two things that had been holding it back were no longer issues. The first being Oz, while the second was Willow didn't know if Buffy felt the same way about her. Now she not only knew, she was getting tongue and fang from the same woman, who just watched her kill her ex-boyfriend and both were now drinking the blood of said from her very own lips. The demon, new at having emotions and love and pure arousal coursing through its body, did not know what to think or do. It was scared.

Willow pulled back from the kiss, Buffy, who now had a similar smearing of blood across her face, looked at Willow worriedly. "What's wrong?" she asked. The demon that was inhabiting Buffy knew exactly what the other demon was going through. It too had felt the myriad of emotions and feelings, especially when it discovered that it did not want to just kill Buffy's loved ones, as is customary for all vampires when they are first turned, but it wanted to love and do everything that Buffy had wanted to do with Willow. It didn't hate her, or resent her as what usually happened when demons took the places of souls, but it found itself loving her, and not only that, but it was _IN_ love with the wiry redhead, but it didn't want to deal with the soul of Willow, it wanted her body, her passion, her powers even, but most importantly, it wanted the love of the demon that now inhabited Willow as it inhabited Buffy. It couldn't explain this, it didn't want to, it only knew what it had to do to get what it wanted, and right now, that meant being "best friend Buffy" so that "Willow" would talk about it, and then the two demons could love each other for all eternity.

"I-I, uh, I…I…can't…I don't…I, uh, I-I-I…" it/she stuttered. Buffy smiled, and drew her "best friend" closer and pulled her over to sit on the steps leading into the Bronze. "Come on, you can tell me. We're best buds, right?"

Willow suddenly smiled, apparently feeling better playing the friends game than talking about its feelings. "Yeah, we're best buds. So what do best buds do?" the redhead asked.

Buffy had yanked a rag from Oz's shirt and was using it to clean up the now drying blood from her lips. Once she felt her face was clean enough, she started using the sodden cloth to dab Willow's mouth clean, like a mother wiping her baby's face clean. While doing this, Buffy answered her friend's question. "We talk about what we did today, we make small talk, we tell each other what were going to do tomorrow, and…we talk about our love lives. And after all that, we talk about our feelings for one another."

That last one startled the Willow vampire, enough that she immediately tensed and reminded Buffy of "Nervous Willow", who always babbled and tittered and paced until Buffy calmed her down. "What-what feelings? I don't…I don't know what your talking about. I'm perfectly A-OK in the feelings department. Yes sir, no problems here. I am problem-free. My feelings and me are both perfectly without problems, yes sire, completely absent of all problems, no there are no problems here, we have no…"

"Will, baby, babble alert." Buffy interrupted. She was just staring at the newly-re-born redhead vampire, absolutely fascinated at everything that was happening. It…she actually found the nervous display to be _cute_. Demons don't **do** _cute_. But she couldn't help it, and every part of her knew it, she was in love with Willow. Didn't matter if she had a soul, was a vampire, was like Angel, or was a rat snack, she loved Willow and the only thing that could change that was a conscience that cared, or that didn't want Willow to know. _That_ was no longer a problem.

Willow stopped talking and stared back at the vampire-d Slayer. Finally the demon let itself be known as something besides Willow, "What's happening to me?" it/she asked, vamped out. Buffy finished wiping Willow's mouth and tossed the filthy rag away, coincidentally right onto Oz's face. She hugged her only and true friend tight against her cold and at the same time warm body. It always took some time before the demon "became one" with the person, and Buffy was only just beginning to think of everything she was feeling as _her_ instead of the _human's_ or _strange emotions_.

"Shhh, shhh, it'll be OK. I know, I'm feeling it too. Aren't we the lucky ones to be the only two demons who get stuck as the vampires of two girls who could never stop loving each other?" she asked sarcastically. "It always takes time to get used to having a demon inside instead of a soul, and even then, it's a little weird until the demon gets used to being in a human. But believe me, once the demon and human merge, it'll be better. Much, much better. I promise. I love you Will." Buffy meant every syllable of that last line. There was no more demon and human, now she was just Buffy, vampire ex-Slayer.

Willow pulled out of the embrace, and looked steadily at her best friend and lover. She had actual tears rolling down her face. Despite all the legends and stories, vampires do not cry blood tears, they cry with salt-water, same as the rest of us, its just that nobody ever sees a vampire cry, and if they do, they don't exactly get a chance to tell anybody else about it.

"What-" sniffle "what do you mean?" she asked.

"Which part? The it'll get better as you get used to it, or that I love you?" Buffy responded.

Willow laughed out loud through her tears and gave the Willowy response, "The second one."

Buffy smiled and picked up some of Willow's tears with her fingertip, she put the finger in her mouth and savored the salty taste before answering. "The reason that I turned you, instead of torturing you, or killing you, or feeding off you, or cutting you up into tiny-itty-bitty little un-bait-worthy…"

"I get it." Willow interrupted.

Buffy continued, smiling, "The reason I turned you was not only so I wouldn't be alone for eternity, or to guarantee that I didn't, heaven and hell forbid, get careless and got myself killed someday. I turned you because I, not just human Buffy, not curious demon Buffy, but _I_ love you. And I don't care whether you're human, vampire, or whatever in Satan's name Angel is, I love you, and nothing, _**nothing**_ can ever change that. But I figured we could have more fun as vampires. Plus, a demon loving a demon, can't get more gossipy than that, now can you?"

Willow had stopped crying, but she still had a certain pout on her demonic shifted face. "Will, baby, Red? Talk to me." Buffy said quietly. To make things more comfortable, she shifted to her own demonic visage. Willow looked at her with longing and a small amount of definitive love. Finally she spoke, "I love you?" It was a question, and Buffy knew what she had to do.

"I'd like to think so. Because; I…LOVE…YOU!" Buffy stated in a way that left Willow with absolutely no doubt about the Slayer's feelings. The demon in Willow began to realize something in that moment. It was beginning to like love. It especially liked the way that Willow's blood seemed to boil every time it's sire spoke of her feelings for her/itself. As it searched its own dark and twisted emotions of greed, power lust, and hate, it found that its own feelings were responding to the other demon in front of it. It may not have been falling in love with it…uh, her, but it was definitely beginning to really like her. Kind of like having an ally in a war, someone you know you can count on, no matter what. It definitely liked this feeling, and was actually anxious for its merger with Willow to be complete so it could feel the full effects of love. Right now its love was that of a child's for its mother. Give 'em one more feeding together, and they'd be in the sack by tomorrow night.

Willow smiled further, and shifted to human face (looked human, while vamp out will be the same) and leaned in and gave Buffy a patented Willow kiss. Oz could've testified, but, well no he couldn't. She caressed her lips against the still vamped Buffy in tiny little kisses that teased and excited the undead Slayer. As Buffy responded, giving more of a full-on body contact kind of kiss, she loved the way Willow was kissing her, and never wanted her to stop. Unfortunately, they had to stop, or they would never make it to Giles' on time. Buffy wanted to have fun with the old Watcher before giving him to Willow. She had a plan.

"Um, gawd Willow, unh…" Buffy groaned as she pulled herself away from the woman she loved. "We…we gotta stop. We can't do this out in the open. It's only five hours till the sun comes up, and everything that I want to do to you right now is going to take a hell of a lot longer than 5 hours. Besides, I promised you Giles, and I want to play with him a little first. Do you mind?" Buffy was afraid of alienating her new lover by asking her to stop. Even if she did have a good reason for it.

Willow smiled as Buffy looked human and slowly got to their feet. Willow seemed to get a mischievous glint in her eyes as she answered Buffy, "Mind, why would I mind. I love every one of your plans. Do you think we can do it in front of him?" she asked after a (metaphor) breath.

Buffy's smile seemed to reflect the same mischief as she tugged Willow to the end of the alley, thinking about the idea the little red witch had given her. They walked arm in arm all the way to Giles' apartment on the edge of uptown Sunnydale. This time they looked human for most of the way there.

Ten minutes later, a dark figure walked into the alley. He saw the body and rushed over to it. He instantly knew that whoever it was, was dead and had been for some time. That was when he moved the bloodied and sodden rag that hid the boys face. When the man saw who it was, a trace of emotion that he never usually allowed to appear crossed and vanished across his face. He silently cursed himself, the demon within him, and everything evil in the world. He also cursed whoever had done this travesty. Rather than waste much more time mourning over his lost friend, he moved to get up to call another friend. When suddenly he caught a _very_ familiar scent in the air. But it wasn't just in the air, it was on the cloth he was holding, it was practically all around the alley. And another scent was with it. One that disturbed him beyond comprehension. He spent no more time in the alley and raced to the nearest phone. He rapidly called a memorized number and waited impatiently for the line to pick up. Finally after five rings, someone answered.

"Hello?" spoke a distinctly British voice.

"Giles? It's Angel…"

**Section 3**

'Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock!' Someone rapped on Giles' door.

The mid-forty retired British Watcher stepped out of his kitchen alcove and walked towards the door. Taking precautions that living on the Hellmouth instilled in its more knowledgeable citizens, Giles peeked through the peephole before opening the door. It was Willow.

He opened the wooden door wide and greeted the young hacker with a broad smile. She in turn gave a shy smile that was custom for Willow. She even waved her hand 'hi' before speaking.

"Hi Giles. I'm sorry to disturb you at this late of an hour, though for us, meaning the Scooby's and with Buffy being the Vampire Slayer and having to slay at this time of night, it might not really be considered late, I mean, you're her Watcher and you have to check up on her when she gets done with patrol, so I guess its really not that late because you have to stay up later than most people because you have to report what Buffy does and everything and…"

"Willow? Was there something I could help you with?" Giles interrupted, feeling that they would be there all night if he let her actually try and finish that thought.

"Uh, is Buffy here?" she asked, smiling shyly again, having been embarrassed at getting caught babbling again.

"No, she's not. Though she is due back in from her patrol very shortly." He answered briefly.

Willow seemed to lose some of that shyness there. "Well, uh, do you mind if I wait here for her? I have to talk to her about something." Willow asked, being very cryptic.

Giles stepped back from the door, leaving it open, and walked back to his desk. "No of course I don't mind." He said as he walked. Inside, Willow was beginning to get nervous, but outside looked the same to anyone as Willow. When Giles noticed that Willow hadn't come inside yet, he looked up at her, surprised somewhat.

Willow gave Giles a kind of goofy grin and said, "Uh, you mind if I wait inside?" She almost fully expected him to guess right then what was going on. She had figured out what was wrong with Buffy from the second that the Slayer had spoken to her. And here, Giles was a Watcher, trained to train the Slayer to identify vampires. She was sure the jig was up, until…

"No, of course I don't mind. Come on in. It's just that hardly any of you don't just barge on in here with little or no warning anymore. It's nice to see that at least some of you still have some manners." He explained as he went about clearing papers and books from his desk.

Willow smiled her predator's smile and walked inside. When Giles turned back towards her, she quickly dropped it and almost made haste for the couch, which was where she usually sat when helping with the research. Giles gave her a peculiar look, but for the most part ignored it as he went about organizing several things. Five minutes later, another knock on the door, Giles moved to get it, but before he could even blink, Willow was there, opening the door. It was Buffy.

"Hey Wills, didn't expect to see you here. Hey Giles, sorry I'm late, but I ran into a couple of nasty vamps, and it took me a while to get through it all." Buffy said as she stood just outside of the doorway.

Giles stepped forward, and grabbed his journal off of a shelf, preparing to write in it later, and sat it on his desk. "Well, why don't you come in and we'll discuss it…" he was suddenly interrupted by the phone ringing.

Buffy stepped in, and Willow whispered to her so that Giles couldn't hear. "How do you do that?" referring to the way the Slayer got people to invite her in just by standing there, whereas Willow had to work to get her invitation. Buffy just shrugged and moved over to the couch. "Just lucky, I guess," she replied to Willow in a low voice.

The phone, a portable, was on a coffee table by a recliner, across from the couch. Giles had been standing by his desk when it began to ring. He managed to answer it just after the fifth ring.

"Hello?" he said.

'_Giles? It's Angel…I've got to talk to you. Are you alone?'_

Willow and Buffy's ears perked, as they were able to hear what Angel was saying with their vampire hearing. They both pretended to be reading left over books while really listening in on Giles' phone conversation.

"Um…relatively." Giles answered.

Angel, apparently believing that was enough, continued. '_Giles, something's happened. You remember that evil vampire Willow that showed up a few weeks ago?'_

"How could I forget. But I thought we sent her back to her home dimension, why bring her up now?" Giles asked.

'_She's back. I don't know how, I don't know why, but believe me, she's back.'_ Angel responded.

"How…?" Giles began, then stopped and asked something else. "How do you know this?"

The line was silent for a full minute. Then, '_Oz is dead. He was killed by a vampire in the back alley behind the Bronze. It wasn't too long ago from now, so I was still able to smell the two vampires that did it. One of them smelled exactly like that vampire Willow.'_

"And the other?" Giles asked, suddenly very pale himself. He glanced over at Buffy, and especially Willow, she would be devastated to hear about Oz.

'_I'm not sure.'_ Was all the response that Angel gave.

"All right. Call the police and paramedics, I'll be there as soon as I can. I take it you're still at the Bronze?" Giles asked.

'_Yeah, but Giles, Oz is dead. The paramedics can't help him.'_ Angel responded. Willow, despite herself, smiled a little when he said that.

All Giles said in response was, "I know. I'll be there in a few minutes." He hung up the phone and rapidly explained to the girls that he had to leave immediately, and told them to stay there until he got back. He was out the door before they could offer any kind of response.

Willow frowned. "Well, there goes dinner." She said sadly. Buffy looked at her, a giggling smile forming on her face, and then caught the redhead's eyes.

"What?" Willow asked.

Buffy's smile broadened and then she tackled Willow onto the couch and began to kiss her, and kiss her, and then began to grope _and_ kiss her. Willow, smiling through the kisses muttered, "Oh," and then responded in kind to Buffy. Fairly shortly the clothes began to fly.

Meanwhile, while the erstwhile lovers were finding themselves, Giles was already at the Bronze, claiming the body for the police investigation. He then, after much and seemingly endless mind numbing questions later, pulled Angel aside to converse on what Buffy called "Slayer" business.

"Angel, how long was he there before you got to him?" Giles asked.

Angel, as emotionless yet mournful as he always appeared to be, shook his head slightly. "I don't know. Maybe ten, maybe twenty minutes. An hour at the most. Despite having experience and expertise Giles, I'm not that much of an expert on how long a body has been lying there dead. I can tell you that he was afraid, and that he was there for less than fifteen minutes, because…because…"

"Because that's the least amount of time the human body needs to be dead before it goes…cold." Giles finished when Angel couldn't continue.

Giles looked at Angel. Angel was staring at the ground. He was obviously blaming himself for what had happened. He also might have been thinking about Buffy's feelings, but Giles had been around the souled vampire long enough to know that there was something else. "What is it Angel?" he asked softly.

A sudden look of concern and fear crossed Angel's face, though he still did not look at Giles. Whatever realization he had just come to, he did not like it one bit. In fact it looked like he was absolutely terrified. He was silently shaking his head back and forth, muttering something. Giles could barely make out what he was saying, "No…no…it…can't be…no…no…it…can't be…no…no…" and so forth. Finally, Giles had had enough.

"Angel!" he near shouted. The startled vampire looked up, looking far paler than he ever had before. "It's Buffy," he says in a near-whisper. "What?" Giles exclaims. "It's Buffy," he repeats, and continues to do so until Giles shouts at him again. Then, all of a sudden, everything about Angel's frightened and startled demeanor disappears, only to be replaced by that of his vampire nature. Angel stares intently at Giles, then he steps uncomfortably close, smelling the startled Watcher.

When Angel detects the identical scent, he immediately knows what has happened, and knows how lucky Giles is to be alive. "Angel! What is your problem? I mean, really! What is wrong? You look like you've seen…well, two bloody ghosts!" Giles exclaimed, of course taking Oz into account.

"Worse Giles. Much, much worse." Angel said quietly, almost mournfully quiet. "What do you mean?" Giles asks, genuinely concerned. Angel looks the much younger, though older looking, man directly in the eyes. Everything about his expression, face, and eyes says he is being quite serious. "Giles. Buffy and Willow are dead. Willow was the one who did this, but Buffy was there also. Both of their scents are on that cloth that was over Oz's face. It was all Oz's blood though."

Giles paled far worse than Angel had been several moments before. Angel was concerned that he would pass out, but he steadied himself, and asked another question. "How do you know that it's our Willow? Or that Buffy might still be alive, but chained up somewhere? We've got to find them…we've…got to…"

He stopped himself when he realized. Both Buffy and Willow had been at his house. And he had _invited_ them in! What's worse, is that they probably came straight to his house, right after murdering Oz. He just realized how lucky he had been that Angel had called, and that he had left when he did. "Oh my God." Was the last comment to come from Giles lips, before he promptly fainted, Angel just barely catching him before he hit the pavement. He was about to go and get one of the paramedics that were still here, until he noticed a strange figure in the distant shadows.

It was unusual because it was a short long-haired, possibly blond, young woman carrying something that looked like a much larger body over her shoulders. Angel had the unfortunate choice now, of following what looked like vampire Buffy taking another victim, or getting help for Giles, or running home and saving his own hide, as that the sun was due up in less than thirty minutes. He ran as fast as he could for the far off shadows. But by the time he got to where it had been, the woman, or whatever it had been had disappeared. Rather than chasing nothing, Angel ran back to the paramedics and got them to help Giles, before hightailing it back to his mansion lair.

About three hours before Angel saw that dark figure in the alley way, back at Giles' apartment, the two vampire loves were just recovering from their first ever lesbian sexual encounter, vampire or otherwise. Amazingly, they had both managed to remain on the couch, despite various reactions.

Buffy was sitting up, obviously the one to recover first, and was drawing invisible circles on her lover's smooth pale white abdomen with her fingertip. Willow, who was wide awake, had a smile plastered to her head. Ironically, it was identical to both normal human Willow, and vampire Willow. The first having the smile whenever something good surprised her that she never saw coming. The second whenever she just got through with an extremely satisfying torture session. Never seen on the show/episode.

Buffy, while occupying her hands, and a couple other body parts, was staring quite intently at her Willow's face. _Her_ Willow. She really liked the sound of that. About two seconds after Giles had left was the merger of demon and human personality complete in Buffy, and it was apparently beginning to take hold in Willow, as some of the things that the fiery redhead had done to the strong blond were nothing that Willow would ever do, though apparently _could_. While a few of the other things were so intense and personal and passionate…and _imaginative_, that no demon could have ever come up with them. That's how Buffy knew that Willow loved her, and was in love with her. How she kept running across traces of Willow, but despite the aspects that weren't all "Willow," it was put into a way that was meant to pleasure and invoke the Slayer. Buffy knew she hadn't made a mistake turning Willow. But she was beginning to wonder about her decision to take Giles out next. Maybe she should have taken out Xander or Cordelia instead. She wanted to save Angel for the very last. She was going to enjoy paying him back for everything he did to her. Good and bad alike. Most especially for the bad.

"What are you thinking about?" Willow asked suddenly, breaking the Slayer out of her thoughts.

"Oh, not much. What with having a dead brain and all," the blond smirked at her own joke as she repositioned herself so that she was lying on top of the pale girl, with her chin on the vampires' chest. Not getting much of a laugh out of her lover, she continues. "I was wondering if it was such a good idea coming after Giles next, instead of going after somebody else."

"Who else were you thinking of?" Willow asks idly, knowing full well who the Slayer's targets were.

Buffy smiled brightly at the question. Then a sudden thought struck her. The smile and happy contented expression vanished from the young woman's face as an intense look of concentration replaced it. Willow noticed the change, and keeping the same plastered smile asked, "What is it Buffy?"

Buffy laid there for another moment, and threw a lopsided grin at her friend. "An idea." With that, she quickly gets up, and dresses, minus underwear. Being immortal, and a reanimated body, she no longer had to worry about trivial biological concerns of sagging breasts, periods, or diseases. Good thing she "died" young. Once she's dressed, she quickly pecks Willow, and grabs her jacket on the way to and out the door, but Willow quickly stops her.

"Buffy! Where are you going?" Willow exclaimed in a panicky voice as she moved with vampire speed to grab Buffy's arm. She couldn't have cared less that she was naked, in a stranger's home, or that she was completely vulnerable. All she cared about was that her Buffy was leaving without an explanation.

Buffy turned to look at her, and her heart nearly broke, had it not already been. The expression on the young vampires face was a picture of pure loss and terror of that loss. She quickly wanted to do anything she could to erase all of that from her true love's face. "Oh Wills! I'm so sorry! I completely lost my head! I'm so sorry! I wasn't running out or anything like a one-night stand. I could never do anything like that to you! I love you, and I'll never leave you! Never doubt that! I'm never going to abandon you."

Willow immediately relaxed, but she kept as much of the "scared girl" face as she could, but Buffy could tell that she was much reassured by her words. "So, where are you going?" Willow asked, but in a far less panicked tone, and more an accusatory one.

Buffy smiled, she knew her little witch needed her. There was no way she would ever abandon this child, this daughter, this creation of hers. No matter what became of them. And she had just realized that she couldn't be all "romantic" and spend a lot of time on _surprises_ this early in their relationship. Trust and love had to be nurtured, she couldn't expect Willow to blindly obey her, even though it might rip both their hearts out, and then run stakes through both.

"I was going to get some late dinner, since Giles left. But I also wanted to take care of something else before dawn, just so we don't have to worry about certain other responsibilities. I love you." She kissed a very naked Willow on the nose.

Willow finally broke down, and smiled giggling. "What kind of responsibilities?" she asked innocently. "I love you more," she added and then nipped the slightly shorter woman's bottom lip.

"Well, aside from choice freshness in my pickings, I thought that it would be a good idea if I got my mother to come over, just so she won't worry. You know how she tends to worry, don't you? I love you no matter what." Buffy said, just before kissing the nude Willow full on the mouth.

Once the blond Slayer let up, the reddened witch considered what she had said. The more she thought about it, the more she smiled. As her smile was about to split her entire head open, she said, "Are you going to keep her to yourself, or are you gonna bring something home in a doggy bag? And what about my family? I love you forever." Willow then wrapped her arms around the vampire Slayer's neck and kissed her as deeply as she knew how. (We'll see that Willow is going to develop a slight…obsession with the word _doggy_.)

When the two parted for metaphorical breath, Buffy moaned, "Oh god, Willow." "Don't you mean Goddess Willow?" the redhead responded in whisper. They laughed despite themselves and their little game, and the effect it was having on both of them. Getting back to the young one's question, "Actually, I wanted to torture her a little. You know, say a few goodbyes, and watch her cry and beg, and boo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo. Besides, it's so much better when we share in the kill. Or, at least I'm hoping it will be. Anyway, isn't your family away on business or something boring like that? I love you more times than you can say the words." She then took Willow's face gently between her hands and proceeded to give the inexperienced hacker the most sensual and fulfilling kiss that either had ever received or given, to that date. Two minutes later, Buffy pulled back to see Willow's eyes still closed and her lips slightly puckered from her own lips. She smiled, sensing that she had won whatever game they had been playing at.

Finally Willow came out of her trance, shaking her head slightly and opening her eyes with a wide grin. She wasn't going to give up that easily. "Actually, my mom was working late tonight, and my dad is away visiting his sister, my aunt Petunia. They'll be back in a few hours, with my aunt coming for a visit for a few days. Do you think we could kill everybody together, all at once? Even Giles?" There was an almost innocence in the way she asked the question. Like a child asking for more candy. She added quickly, "I love you just as many times as you can say it, and one more time." She then vamped out, and playfully nipped and teased Buffy's neck.

"Hmm, that's nice," Buffy murmured. She answered Willow's question by pulling the redheaded vampire up, vamping out herself, and then giving her a passionate pointed lip-lock that left them both literally and metaphorically breathless. As they broke it off, Buffy said in a surprisingly clear and calm voice, "I'll see what I can do. But for now, I'll bring Mom over here, so we can keep a good eye on her. I'll swing by and pick Faith up too. Then I guess we'll just wait for Giles to come home."

Backing up slowly from the woman that she desperately wanted to throw down and make wild and passionate love to, again, Buffy looked human, and grabbed the child's chin with her hand. Looking from brown eye to glowing yellow eye, Buffy said in a clear, strong, and loving voice, "I. LOVE. YOU. Nothing will, nor can ever change that Will. I'll be back in two hours. Maybe less if I have motivation to return." As soon as the last word left her mouth, vampire Willow pulled the Slayer back to her in a full body embrace and a heated kiss that Buffy almost completely forgot about going anywhere, except to a place where she could be with her Willow. Fortunately, the computer genius vampire kept her head and pushed the blond away slightly, after their kiss, and said in a highly seductive tone, "I'm not going to be wearing anything until we get me that new wardrobe, and we can't go shopping without your mom, it would be rude. And don't forget, I get to make Faith scream when you bring her back. And if you hurry, you might be screaming to, but not in pain, mostly."

Buffy was almost drawn into another long kiss, but keeping the screaming in mind, also confident that Willow would still be naked upon her return, Buffy instead pecked the vampire's lips, and was out the door and down the street before Willow could blink. The vampire Slayer ran faster than anything else could move all the way to her former house, where her mother was actually still awake and in the living room.

As she approached the porch, an unbidden thought came to her. 'What if I can't get into my own house, now that I'm a vampire, this is still Joyce Summer's house, and through family, Buffy Summers', but does vampire Buffy still count as Buffy?' Confused by the very phrasing of that thought, Buffy shook her head, made sure that she looked human, (obviously _not_ with a mirror), and approached the front door. About a half second before her hand would have reached the doorknob, the door opened of its own volition, with Joyce being the one holding it open. Surprisingly, there was a smile on the middle-aged woman's face.

"Buffy! I thought that was you! Well, don't just stand there like I'm Spike or something, come on inside, before you catch a death of cold!" (Sorry, I just couldn't resist) Joyce exclaims as she hurries the unknown vampire inside. Well, that leaves the whole 'could I have gotten in without an invitation?' question unanswered, but still, the point was to get inside, Buffy thought to herself.

Catching on to what the older Summers woman said, Buffy could barely resist rising to the challenge of the retort. "Mom? Did you just say 'catch a death of cold'? You did _not_ just actually say something that _Giles_ considers an ancient saying, did you?" She said in her 'mother' tone, her voice dripping the sarcasm and teenage angst of dealing with a parent.

Joyce Summers blushed a rosy scarlet all across her face, hinting at the blood rushing to her head, a sound that the vampire easily heard as clear as running water. She grinned sheepishly as she closed the door and then took a long look at Buffy. "Buffy, are you feeling all right? You look awfully pale, even for the late nights you've been running since Faith…" she stopped there, knowing somewhat how her daughter felt about the other Slayer. She then just finished with, "Are you feeling all right?"

Buffy smiled, in a particular way that indicated that she said she was not happy, but sadly amused, and shrugged her shoulders. "Yeah, Mom, I'm fine. Actually I feel a whole lot better than I have for a while now. I was over at Giles, checking in from the patrol. Willow was there, so we…hung out for a bite…I mean, bit. We hung out for a bit. Yeah, just me and Willow hanging…with Giles of course. And not in the sense of hung, like hung from a rope dead kinda sense, but more the modern term of stayed with and enjoyed each other's company, kinda hung. I'm shutting up now, before I shove my foot all the way down my throat."

Joyce smiled again, 'Same old Buffy, always tripping over her words, just like her mother of course.' She shook her head slightly, in that parental way that says that the child just did something really cute, but its nothing to laugh about, way. "So how was patrol?" she asked, turning back to the kitchen. "Are you hungry? I can fix you up something real quick if you are. I remember Faith saying something about being hungry or something after Slaying before…"

Buffy entered the kitchen just after her "mother", and leaned on the counter of the island in the middle of the floor. Buffy smiled in the same way her mother had, but when used for parents. "Yeah, or _something_, Mom." She giggled slightly as she thought about all the talks she and Faith had about being "hungry and horny" after a good night of Slaying. Faith usually tended to take care of the horniness first. Buffy smiled as she thought of where the dark-haired Slayer was now. '_Too bad that Faith won't be doing much more Slaying, but I'm sure that _Willow _and I can still take care of those…_tendencies _she'd always get_.'

Buffy turned back to her mother, as the woman was looking in the refrigerator for something to feed her dead daughter. She decided to answer the questions, "Well, not much really happened tonight on patrol. I got five, maybe six vampires before I was forced to take a _rest_. And you don't have to go to any trouble for me Mom, I got some take out with Willow." She put an unusual emphasis on the word rest. It was not lost on Joyce, though it's true meaning might have been.

"Oh, well you're all right, aren't you?" Joyce asked, abandoning the open refrigerator, and turning her concerned eyes on her _only_ daughter. (*_**AN: There will be NO Dawn in this Universe***_). Suddenly the calm homemaker mother underwent a startling transformation, into an angry, _protective_ mother.

"I knew you were staying out too late. Buffy, I know this is your destiny and all, but I am seriously worried right now. Mr. Giles is pushing you too far. He's keeping you out until barely 3 or 4 in the morning, and you still have school, and then there are those extra training sessions after school. I hardly ever get to see you anymore, and here you are, it's almost 3:45 in the morning now, and you're looking paler than I have ever seen you look before, except for that time that I embarrassed you in front of Xander by flashing your underwear in front of him and Rupert."

"Mother!" Buffy exclaimed, her white cheeks blushing temporarily pink at the memory. She was now looking forward to her time with the older woman and her new lover. As much as Buffy would miss the kind woman who had been her mother, she could not be allowed to live. Buffy had thought briefly of turning her, having an eternal motherly companion, then had almost immediately dismissed it. Aside from having to put up with whatever motherly concerns and tantrums that would survive the demon, Buffy could not imagine doing that to a woman as kind as her mother. It just…would not be…right. Yet, all the same, she could not be permitted to live, as she was the only family connection, aside from Giles, which actually cared for her, thus would miss and look for her. Best to take care of it now.

Buffy suddenly changed tactics, as she realized the late hour. If she wanted to get back to Giles' with both her mother and Faith, then she would have to hurry. "Actually Mom," she said after her mother turned back around to close the refrigerator, "something did happen on patrol tonight. Well, something that you might like to know anyway, but nothing to make too big of a deal over."

"Oh really, what?" Joyce asked as she turned back around, to see her daughter gone. "Buffy?"

"This." Buffy said from behind her. Joyce turned quickly to see her fair-haired daughter standing calmly behind her, with yellow eyes, a rigid forehead, and slightly pointy teeth, of those that were actually showing. It took about thirty seconds for Joyce's thoughts go from 'What did Buffy want to tell me?' to 'Wait, isn't that a vampire right in front of me?' to 'Yes, but what is a vampire doing here? Buffy is supposed to be here?' to 'A VAMPIRE!' to 'Don't worry, Buffy will protect me' to 'Wait, if Buffy is here, and that is a vampire, then that means that Buffy is a vampire' and finally to 'OH GOD NO! I can't…my baby…oh what have I done…no, Giles did it! He did this to her! I'll kill him. Oh, but not if Buffy kills me first. RUN!' That was an interesting reaction, no?

About three seconds after Joyce realizes these things, she tries to run to the kitchen door, behind her. Unfortunately, she is not quite fast enough, as Buffy grabs her by the back of the neck, and using her vampire enhanced Slayer strength, hits a pressure point that knocks the woman out, without breaking her neck. Usually you see the same thing in Spy movies when they karate chop the back of someone's neck, and that person falls to the floor asleep. Or you could look at it as the Slayer's version of the "Vulcan Neck Pinch."

The older Summers woman falls limp in the stronger one's arms. Buffy quickly gets her into a fireman's cradle, and briefly considers getting some clothes or other supplies, but one look at the clock tells her to hightail it to Willow's house, where she left Faith tied up. She gets there in about four minutes, running the whole way with Joyce over her shoulder. Having already been invited in, even though Willow is now technically dead, Buffy quickly breaks in the front door, and makes her way upstairs to the formers room, where Buffy finds Faith exactly as she left her, except awake.

Faith had woken up feeling extremely weak. When she finally came to full consciousness, her first thoughts were, 'Where am I? What happened?' and 'Why am I tied to a bed _with_ my clothes _on_?' Shortly, she begins to remember, going on a small errand for the Mayor, running into B as she made a quick pass through one of the cemeteries (just to keep her cover going for a while longer), and then something else. She had tried to get B talking, trying to psyche her out like she had been doing since she switched sides, but the elder Slayer had just stood there, staring at her. That's when Faith opened up with her Slayer senses, and she knew, oh God, she knew! As soon as Faith looked in the blond girl's eyes, the vampire Slayer knew that she knew, and just nodded her head. Despite believing herself to be the better fighter, and being able to take out any vampire in Sunnydale in less than 20 blows, Faith knew that she was dead if she fought Buffy like that. So she ran. She ran as fast and as hard as she could, to the only place that she still felt safe, the Mayor's office.

She hadn't even made it out of the cemetery. "Oh come on, Faith. You're not scared are you?" Buffy said as she seemingly just appeared in front of Faith. "Know what? I think you are. I think you're scared of little old Buffy kicking your ass, and not just kicking your ass, but killing you. Just like you killed the Deputy Mayor. Kind of ironic, isn't it?" Buffy paused at this, waiting for a response from the halted Faith.

"What is?" Faith asked, playing along for now. Her voice held little tremble and much bravado; she was trying to be strong, stronger than Buffy, or at least buy herself enough time to get any kind of help.

Buffy smiled, it was a cruel demeaning smile that Faith had seen on many faces, many times. She knew she was dead. "That you, a murderer, who tried to get me blamed for that by the way, will be killed yourself. But not by a car accident, a gunshot, or even a drug overdose, those are way too mundane anyway. Everybody gets killed by them, right? No, you, you get killed by the very thing you were born to kill. And not just by any vampire, but no, the very Slayer that called you to your destiny to begin with. I guess it's true what they say; 'I made you, and I can destroy you'."

With that, the blond Slayer vamped out and attacked Faith with a flying roundhouse. Faith put up a pretty good fight, she thought. Until Buffy got in a few lucky good shots, like thirty. Then Buffy landed her a nasty left hook, and Faith saw stars, and then fell into the void. The next thing she remembers is being tied up in Willow's bedroom, watching as Buffy and her kissed on the bed. Briefly mistaking this as foreplay for actual sex, she thinks she might be OK if all vamp Buff wanted to do was have a go in the sack with her and Red. She was quickly proved wrong as Willow got up, and began to walk towards her, vamping out as she and Buffy spoke of Slayers, Watchers, who they were going to kill, and especially how they planned to keep Faith chained up for 60 + years to prevent anymore Slayer's from being called. Then, Willow biting her…unusual warmth, followed by a startling chill, and then blackness, and waking up in the same room, tied to the bed.

When Buffy walked in with someone draped almost casually over her shoulder, her panic soared. It wasn't until she tried to scream that she realized that she had been gagged as well. She was struggling as much as she could, hoping to break whatever was holding her so she could try to run again. Even though Buffy was still right there.

"Oh pipe down runt!" Buffy practically shouted. She laid her mother down next to the struggling Faith, who finally saw whom the vampire had been carrying. She had brief thoughts that it was another vampire that Buffy made to drink from her, but one look and seeing that it was Joyce Summers, Buffy's mother, Faith knew that the older woman was in the exact same boat as she herself was in. Though the brown, blond highlighted haired woman might be considerably lucky, because Buffy would only kill her. Faith knew that she would be Willow and Buffy's food supply until she finally gave out, and being a Slayer that could be a considerably long time.

Faith stopped struggling when she saw that it was Joyce beside her. Secretly she had admired the kind woman, so very much different from her own mother. _She_ actually cared about her daughter, yet didn't try to control her life, or insult her, or get drunk until she passed out, and did it again when she woke up. Faith could have liked her, _if_… If what? Faith asked herself. 'If I hadn't accidentally killed a man? If I hadn't run away from my problems? If I had actually let B get to know me? If I had asked her to be there for me?' Faith was on the verge of tears as she realized that she had looked upon this woman as a mother, and now they were both about to die. She started wishing with all her heart for a second chance. She might even become a nun if God got her out of this.

Finally, Faith noticed that B had untied her from the bed, and was tying her feet and arms together to prevent her from getting away. Faith noticed that it was some kite string that B was using to tie her up, as well as with her mother. Faith should have been able to break the string with her Slayer strength, but she felt unnaturally weak, she realized it was due to the blood loss.

Then, just before picking up both of the deceivingly heavy women, Buffy leaned over Faith, looking human. "Nighty night, F." she said sarcastically, as she harshly grabbed the younger Slayer's neck and held until the brunette passed out, like Joyce had. Then, in a feat displaying her great vampire enhanced Slayer strength, Buffy picked up first her mother in a fireman's hold, and then worked Faith onto the other shoulder. Grunting as she left through the open window, Buffy knew she had to hurry, otherwise Willow might get bored, and a bored Willow was a dangerous Willow.

About half way back to Giles', Buffy, who had been trying to run with the two women but just couldn't, had to stop to take a break. Aside from that first meal from that tasty little shop girl, and drinking a little of Oz's blood from Willow's lips, the newly born vampire Slayer had barely eaten anything. Just as she sat the two heavy women down onto the soft grass, Buffy noticed a couple walking through the park across the street. They seemed to be in somewhat of a hurry. Buffy couldn't quite tell from this distance, but it looked like one of the local college students and a younger girl, with red hair.

In less than a second, Buffy had made up her mind. She tore off across the empty street into the abandoned park, and easily caught up with the preoccupied couple. Buffy didn't recognize either person, but the letter jacket that the taller male was wearing said that he indeed went to the local college. Rather than waste time on stalking and savoring the fear of prey from the hunt, Buffy just ran up, sniffed to make sure they were both human and that no other vampires were around, and then knocked the jock to the ground. Before the girl even had the chance to understand what was happening, her boyfriend, or whatever he had been, was dead, and Buffy was feeling all the stronger.

When the girl finally did realize, she started to scream. Buffy kept drinking, getting more than her fill until the stupid and dead jock was completely drained. Then she turned her attention to the still screaming, but stupid girl, who had stood there in shock watching Buffy eat her honey. Ex-honey.

Getting up and looking human, Buffy smiled at the girl, and punched her so hard that two teeth were knocked out, as well as the girl. She wasn't dead, but she wasn't going anywhere. Thinking that with that little meal, that she could probably carry _four_ heavy girls, Buffy picked the red haired girl and carried her back over to the two women she had been carrying.

Hearing a sudden, and very feminine scream, Faith was jolted back to consciousness. "Wes?" she mumbled as she looked around. It all came back in a flash, but seeing herself still tied up on the grass, rather than on a bed, or chained up to a sewer wall, Faith figured that Buffy maybe got a little hungry.

Not looking a gift horse in the mouth, Faith began to struggle with her bonds, until she felt the ones on her legs give a little. Straining all she could, Faith finally, after huffing and puffing and pulling every muscle in her lean body, broke the strings on her legs and upper arms. Unfortunately, her wrists were still tied, but whatever, Faith got up as fast as she could and ran like a cheetah in a beeline to the Mayor's office.

When Buffy got back to see the missing Faith and torn kite string, she sniffed the air, and immediately locked onto Faith's scent and trail. Amazingly enough, she was headed straight for the center of town, to Mayor Wilkin's office. Buffy shrugged and picked up both the women and ran the rest of the way to Giles'. She got there in less than two minutes.

There was a slight knock on the heavy oak door to Giles' apartment, then a muffled shout of "Willow! It's Buff. My arms are kinda full, so could you please open the door?" Almost immediately, the door flew open, and Buffy nearly dropped her dual load as she glimpsed the pale yet lean form leaning against the dark wood door. "That was fast," the figure said casually, till she noticed the two packages thrown across Buffy's shoulders.

"Ooh! You brought goodies! I think that entitles you to my goodies, wouldn't you agree?" Willow asked in an uncharacteristically sexy tone. Buffy immediately came up to Willow, dropped the girl but managed to maintain her hold on her mother, as she caught her redheaded lover in a loving, and kissing, embrace.

When they broke apart, Willow glanced down at the unconscious red-haired human. "Where's Faith?" she asked, once again sounding like a little girl.

"Oh," Buffy said, as she made her way to the couch to set her mother upon it. "Well, she's not the Slayer for no good reason. Apparently, while I was feeding off of this chick's jock boyfriend, she woke up and made a run for the Mayor's office. What can I say, I got hungry." Buffy responded to Willow's accusatory stare. "Anyway, don't worry, I've got her scent, and I can get her back in no time at all."

"So is she for me?" Willow asks, coming up behind her Buffy and pressing her petite and nude frame into the back of the stockier blond. Kissing her neck and taking soft nips here and there, Willow heard her sire begin to purr.

"Umhmm," Buffy affirmed as she closed her eyes, enjoying the pleasure that her childe was giving her. "When are you going to get Faith back?" Willow asked. "Oh, tonight, but a little later. Give her time to sweat, wondering if I'm on her trail or not. Don't you worry your pretty little head, I'll get your meal ticket back."

"Oh, she's not my meal ticket." Willow answered cryptically, as she began to rub her hands in certain spots where she found the Slayer liked to be touched. "Oh," Buffy responded, her eyes still shut in sweet ecstasy, "then what is she?"

"My new pet. A Slayer is going to last a lot longer than any other human we could get for me to play with. So if we're going to keep her alive for several months, I might as well make her scream and squirm in torture, just to perfect my technique for whoever you want questioned or whatever." She kept kissing the Slayer.

"Will, I never knew you had such a torture streak. Should I get an S&M catalogue?" Buffy said smiling, opening her eyes to look at her red haired mistress. Willow stopped long enough to look at her Slayer with a coy smile. "Wouldn't hurt." Was all she said, before breaking out into a full grin at the joke. Buffy only chuckled and turned to kiss her love.

Meanwhile, about a mile from the Mayor's office, Faith was still working to get her wrists free, and was constantly stumbling into various objects littered throughout the alley. She knew that Buffy was trailing her, and all she could think was get somewhere safe, get to the Mayor. Too concentrated on her problems and the phantom behind her, Faith never saw the lowered fire escape ladder, not even when she ran head first into it, effectively knocking her out cold. Her last thought before darkness swallowed completely was, 'What if…?'

**Section 4:**

"Yeeeeeeehhhh !" a feminine soprano voice screamed out into the night.

As her scream faded, the red haired girl gasped for air and began to sob all over again. She was naked, tied upside down in a stranger's bed, and two women were asking her strange questions, and one of them, also a naked redhead, had just broken her finger.

Buffy and Willow were in Giles' upstairs bedroom with the girl that Buffy had brought for Willow. The 17 year old girl was tied with rope that Buffy knew Giles had, in a bondage layout, with her arms tied securely above her, her breasts, waist and abdomen tied in intricate knots, and her legs spread eagle, but with her ankles touching her hips in a fashion that no human could put it in unaided.

"Wha-wu-what-" sob "-what do-do…do you wa-won-want with me? sob" the girl sobbed/begged. She was upside down, hanging from several hooks in the ceiling, so that her arms were behind her as well as above her.

"I told you," Willow answered in a soft caressing voice. "I want you to tell me your name." Willow then proceeded to take the girl's right forefinger and broke another section of the bones within the digit.

The girl cried out again and sobbed all the harder. The broken finger was already broken in five places, and despite the girl holding all of her other fingers in a fist, the finger was in the shape of when someone makes a hook shape with their finger. Though the shape was decidedly inhuman in its very contours. Also, pain was shooting through out the entire arm of the girl, and not just because of the position it was forced into, not just because of the broken bones in one finger, but because the disconnected muscles in said finger were trying to pull it into the fist all of the other fingers were already in, and such motion was no longer possible.

"JAMIE!" the girl screamed out. "My name is Jamie! I told you that already. My name is Jamie," the girl sobbed. "Oh please! PLEASE! No, I'll do anything, just please, please, please, PLEASE! Don't hurt me anymore!" the girl begged as she felt Willow touching the joint at the tip of her broken finger.

Willow only smiled, she was enjoying herself immensely. Gently she rolled the joint between her own forefinger and thumb. Then she began to hum a familiar tune, though given the situation, as well as the source, it was seriously out of place, and really, really creepy. "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" was background as Buffy, also naked, crawled underneath the girl to look at her face-to-face.

"Please…no, please…no, stop, please, please, please, please, pleasepleaseplease…" the girl mumbles and begged as Willow continued to roll the joint and hum her wicked little tune.

"You know, I don't think my girl here thinks that you're telling her the truth. And I hate liars, especially when they lie to my girl. So I'll tell you what," Buffy commented casually, as though discussing a shopping trip. "I'm going to give you a hint about what she wants to hear, and then it will be up to you about how much longer we'll have to do this, OK?"

The girl, desperate and with tears in her eyes, hastily nodded, which caused Willow to pause in her humming and click her tongue in a teacher-like fashion. She also tightened her grip on the joint she was holding. The girl froze and stammered out, "W-wha-what d-d-do I-I-I-I have t-to d-d-do?"

Buffy smirked and answered, "Well, if your name isn't _Jamie_, then chances are that it's something else. But let's take it from the philosophers side, shall we?" Buffy paused as she leaned up and licked the tears from the girl's right cheek all the way up to her eye. She gave an approving sound and proceeded to lick the other cheek all the way to the eye. She smiled and continued, "I believe it was Shakespeare who wrote, "What's in a name?" Therefore implying that we have no names, just words and symbols that other people call us. Keeping this in mind, you are not Jamie. See, to us, you're just a plaything to tease," Buffy started circling the girl's swollen nipples with her fingers, "touch," and moved on to fully caress her, " and torture." and she sharply pinched both nipple causing the girl to wince in pain.

Buffy crawled out from beneath the girl, but before she did whispered in her ear, "Just a hint," and rolled out onto the opposite side from Willow. Speaking of whom, was just finishing up the second verse of the hummed "Itsy Bitsy Spider."

The girl was silent as she contemplated Buffy's "hint" and Willow seemed content to merely hum and play with the girl's finger. Finally, Willow asked again, "What's your name?"

The girl was quiet for several seconds and answered in a timid broken voice, "I-I don't have a name…m-Mistress."

Willow smiled and brightened considerably. She let go of the finger and leaned in and kissed the girl's cheek. "Good girl," praised the vampire, and then leaned back, took the same joint between her fingers, and crushed it in a soft crunching noise.

She screamed louder than ever.

"Now that we've got the introductions out of the way," Willow said letting the fingertip fall loosely, as though the only thing still holding it on was the very skin around it, "here are the rules. So listen carefully because I only say them once. This is a torture session. I'm supposed to have fun, and you're supposed to have pain. So you can accept it and learn your lessons, or you can be afraid and in more pain that you can imagine for longer than you could ever stand. So you better decide now. And if you're real good…" Willow put her mouth to the girl's ear and whispered (without breath), "…I might fuck you to get you off. Once."

The girl could only whimper and accept that she was going to die.

Buffy, having had her fun, and not really the one for a long drawn out torture session, got off the bed and put on her black pants, white tank top, and her ever present leather jacket.

"Will? You think you'll be OK till I get back with Faith? I'll be back before dawn, but I can't say when." Buffy explained as she finished dressing.

"Will" was playing cattails with the girl's limp broken finger and barely paused to give her sire a glowing smile. Buffy returned the smile and climber back on the bed to kiss her lover. "I love you," she said the ever repeated phrase once again. Willow stopped long enough to kiss her back and replied, "I know. Now go get Faith while I play with the _doggy_ here. I'll miss you."

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Buffy stole one more kiss before patting "doggy" on the head and turning towards the stairs. She barely took three steps before a call from Willow stopped her dead.

"Hey, do you want a snack before you go?" the occupied redhead asked. Almost casually, she broke the middle joint of the broken finger. This time the girl, apparently adapting to the pain, only whimpered loudly.

"What do you mean?" Buffy asked, coming back to the bed, opposite Willow. "I thought you wanted your first torture session to last as long as possible. That kinda means no feedings Will. But hey, it's your night."

Willow smiled, after frowning at the whimpering girl. "You're supposed to scream," she told the victim. Turning to Buffy, "Well, I figured a small something wouldn't be too bad. You know, like _finger sandwich_ sized." Buffy laughed and the girl trembled.

"What did you have in mind?" Buffy asked, her eyes glowing yellow with humor and hunger beneath her furrowed brow.

Willow smiled evilly. "Bite off her little toe. Makes a good snack dontchya think?"

Buffy's smile mirrored Willow's as she only nodded and leaned into the left foot close to her. She licked and teased the toe some before finally just biting it off at the joint.

The girl screamed louder than ever. "Now _that's_ more like it," Willow praised. Enjoying her snack, Buffy crawled up next to the girl, judging the reaction when the human saw Buffy's vampire face, she screamed with renewed terror and shouted/stumbled out, "Wha-wu-WHAT ARE-rr-ARE- YOU-U-YOU?"

Willow once again clicked her tongue and calmly took the girl's clenched right pinkie and twisted it 180 degrees around.

Buffy smiled, and soundly swallowing her snack, trampled downstairs as the girl screamed in fresh pain, and fresher terror. Out of habit, Buffy grabbed several stakes and other various weapons.

She also accidentally grabbed the silver cross that Angel had given her when she first came to Sunnydale. When she realized what she had grabbed, she hissed and immediately dropped it. Only when she looked at her hand, there were no burn marks, and there had been no pain either. Confused, she tentatively touched the cross only for nothing to happen. Carefully, she picked it up and held it in flat in her hand, against her palm. Nothing.

It was definitely a cross. Buffy thought for a moment and raced to a mirror on the wall. She held the cross up to it, and the cross seemed to float in midair before it. Buffy had never known of a vampire to be immune to holy relics before. Maybe it was because she was the Slayer. Oh well, no time to figure it out now, she thought.

Putting the cross on, she left and quickly made her way to where she lost Faith, (hah, hah, pun intended) and picked up the girl. As she was leaving the apartment, she heard said girl barking like a chihuahua between sobs and screams. She laughed despite herself.

Meanwhile, Faith was still unconscious in the alley, completely unaware of the danger that was slowly approaching, following the scent of her fear, her sweat, and even her shampoo that Mayor Wilkins insisted she start using.

When Buffy got to the spot, she immediately picked up Faith's scent and had little trouble following it; through the two graveyards, through the three dozen bushes, through the seven some odd tossed around back alleys, until she walked through a large alley less than a mile from City Hall.

The scent was the strongest that it had been all… um, search. She stepped out of the alley…and stopped. The scent was completely gone. Confused, she turned back into the alley and caught the scent almost immediately.

'It's almost like she never left the alley,' Buffy mused to herself. Then she looked down.

And low and behold, there lay Faith. Out like a light with a bruise the size of Rhode Island forming on her forehead. She clicked her tongue, similar to the way Willow had just twenty minutes earlier.

Interestingly, Faith still hadn't managed to get her hands free. Sighing, Buffy picked up the pale, dirty, and broken Slayer, and slowly made her way to the Bronze. She wanted to know what was keeping Giles from coming back "home" to his "daughters".

At a walking pace, it took her about an hour from where she had found Faith. She noticed that while there were paramedics, it was only one ambulance. Surprisingly, there was only one cop car. Ah, Buffy teased, Sunnydale's Finest. No wonder this bitch got away with murder.

As she slowly made her way through the shadows and around the warehouse style building until she could easily see the back alley, where the coroner's van was, as well as all the other cop cars. Oh yeah, Angel and Giles were there talking too.

Smiling, she moved closer, hiding in the shadows of the coroner's van and another cop car that had its lights turned off. She heard as Giles shouted several times because Angel was muttering something that even she couldn't understand. Finally, Angel explained, loud enough for her to hear, what had him so troubled.

"Giles. Buffy and Willow are dead. Willow was the one who did this, but Buffy was there also. Both of their scents are on that cloth that was over Oz's face. It was all Oz's blood though." Angel said deadpan.

Buffy was suddenly struck by how stupid they'd been. It should have been obvious that Angel could smell their scents, and be able tell the difference of what they smell like human, and what a vampire smells like. Buffy could have slapped herself to death, if not for the facts that it would tell Angel she was there, and that she was already dead.

Silently, she crept around the vans and sticking to the shadows, she turned to see her ex-Watcher turn a familiar shade of pale and mutter the words, "Oh my God," before his eyes rolled back and he _fainted_, he actually _fainted_! Buffy thought only Wesley did that, trying hard as she could not to laugh.

Just managing to control herself, she stalked away with absolutely no sound. Something that she had begged Angel to teach her once. Now that she was an actual vampire, it was easy. She wasn't aware of Angel's eyes on her, but she was aware of him running towards her as she reached the end of the alley. She quickly jumped up onto a fire escape with no sound and Faith still over her shoulder.

She watched silently and with a frown on her face as Angel stopped just beneath them and looked in all directions. Apparently not seeing what he wanted, he subconsciously dropped his shoulders and raced back to help Giles. But not before glancing at his watch, giving Buffy exactly how much time she had left till sun-up.

As Angel raced off, Buffy dropped back to the ground. It would have been so easy for her to have landed on top of the souled vampire. To kill him on the spot. An unconscious growl began to emerge from Buffy's throat as she watched Angel. It was suddenly so clear to her. _She __**HATED**_ _him!_

And not because a vampire kills and hates it's loved ones, when it was human, first, though in this case that was a considerable portion of the reason. As a human, Buffy had been hurt by Angelus, and Angel had been different ever since he had returned. But ever since she had realized that she loved, had always loved Willow, Buffy had resented him.

Now, as she even looked at him, she felt a hatred so pure, so great that it boiled the very blood in her body. She ran as fast as she could back to Giles' apartment, where her real and true love awaited.

**Section 5:**

Buffy, with Faith of course, made it back to the townhouse with less than an hour to spare before sunrise. Somehow, she could feel it. Part of it was the Slayer's sense to know when it could no longer hunt, but most of it was the vampire's sense of self-preservation.

As soon as she was inside, she did two things. First was dump Faith on the couch. The unconscious Slayer rolled off with the amount of force put behind her body, but she didn't complain any. Second thing the blond vampire did was check on Willow.

She ran upstairs as fast as she could and immediately noticed three things. First was the smell of blood. It was like an intoxicating perfume to her the way that it not only permeated the air, but how it seemed to be nothing but the air. Second was the sight of blood. The entire upper bedroom was nothing but pooled blood on the floor, stained blood on the walls, or soaked through the sheets of the bed. And the third and final thing she noticed was the other smell, the scent of arousal, of…sex. It was in the air almost as much as the smell of the blood was. Buffy couldn't help but smile at the thoughts of how her little Wills had enjoyed herself, playing with the doggy.

Once she reached the flat, Buffy's smile only grew broader as she took in the sight before her. Willow, still naked by the way, was lying with the contented smile from earlier plastered to her face. Aside from a couple of smudges, a ring around her mouth, and her hands up to her elbows, she seemed to have very little of the blood on her. And all around the happy little firecracker, as Buffy began to think of her vampire childe, was the young red haired girl Buffy had brought home for her to play with.

Down by the vampire's feet was the girl's ribcage and a good portion of her intestines. By her right elbow was the girl's feet and the broken appendages that had been her legs. On the other side was the girl's arms, minus the broken and twisted hands, and the spine. Willow herself was playing with the gnarled and obscene semblances, like a toddler playing with two dolls. And just above her, to the left and on the nightstand, was the girl's head, the face frozen in an expression that was pure ecstasy mixed with unimaginable pain. Both redhead's hair were matted with the blood of the second, and to vampire Buffy, there was nothing sexier than her Wills, covered in blood.

"My gawd Will, would you look at this place?" Buffy exclaimed, her voice sounding indignant with parental disapproval.

The naked vampire on the bed barely tilted her head up at Buffy's exclamation, and then glanced around the small space, moving nothing more than her eyes. With less than a twitch of an eyebrow, she replied, "Yeah, so? What about it?"

Then everything changed about Buffy's demeanor as she smiled toothily and gained a glint of mischief in her dark eyes. "It's beautiful. I love what you've done with it." The blonde then crawled forth and not caring about the left over blood soaking through her clothes, and passionately kissed the fully willing vampire beneath her.

"Mmmm, that was nice," Willow commented as Buffy released her. "Which part, the kiss, or the torture victim?" Buffy asked in her roundabout way. Willow giggled and sighed with no breath. "The kiss was good," she paused to let her smile grow to that head splitting one again, "but the torture was _great_!" Both young vampires broke out into giggles at that phrase.

"I really don't think those words should belong in the same sentence, at least, they aren't supposed to anyway." Buffy commented, enjoying the closeness she had with her love right now. Especially after seeing that…_Angel_.

"Did you get Faith?" Willow asked, changing the subject.

Buffy only nodded and sat back on her haunches. Willow pushed herself up on her elbows, having tossed aside the useless digits of the dead redhead when Buffy began to kiss her, and stared deep into the vampire Slayer's eyes.

"Look I know that the whole soul thing is no longer an issue, but you know how they always used to say that a person's eyes were the windows to their souls? Well, Buff, I hate to break it to you, but I can still read you as well as I ever did. Something's bothering you. I can tell. So you can either tell me what it is now, or I can…" evil smile, "…torture you for the information until you talk. So spill." Willow demanded of her Slayer.

Buffy grimaced in utter defeat and deflated a good deal in the position she sat in. "I saw Angel," she answered her childe. Willow only nodded in understanding, though not fully understanding. "That's not all," the blond vampire continued. Willow waited for what seemed like an eternity to her, but was less than two seconds, "Well?" she demanded after she could no longer take the pressure.

Buffy could only shrug at first. Finally, she spoke, "After I picked Faith up, less than a mile from City Hall mind you, I decided to check out what was going on at the Bronze, you know, going to see what was keeping Giles-y. Well, once I got there, staying well-hidden, I found Angel and Giles talking just outside the alley. Well, love, I'm sorry to say that Angel knows what's happened to us. He was able to smell the difference in our scents from that rag I threw on Oz's face."

"Stop." Willow ordered, "Don't ever say that name again. Just don't." She added at Buffy's questioning look. Buffy only shrugged and continued in her story.

"Well, after I got through beating myself up over our stupidity, I snuck as quietly as I could out of there. Angel of course told Giles, and Will, you're gonna love this," her face suddenly mirroring the head-splitting grin that Willow had been wearing. "I turned back, just to see Giles say, 'Oh my god,' and then he, and I swear to this Wills, he _fainted_ right there on the spot!" Buffy could barely finish the sentence as she was overcome with an uncontrollable fit of giggles and laughter.

"NO WAY!" Willow shouted and shortly joined the master vampire in her giggle-fit. They continued as such until Buffy was reminded of a very important fact by an alarm going off the Giles seemed to have set somewhere downstairs.

All laughing stopped as the vampire Slayer suddenly went rigid and sat straighter than an arrow. "Oh no," she murmured, "Sunrise."

Willow too joined the blond in her nervousness. She knew there'd be a downside to this, she mused. "What do we do?" she asked, sounding like a scared little girl. Buffy looked all around the room, and quickly came to a plan.

"Dump the parts, or at least the ones that we aren't going to eat, and take the sheets to the basement. Then I want you to take care of Faith. She got pretty hurt in her escape attempt, so I'm sorry to say that you can't play with her just yet. But don't worry baby, I promise, soon." Buffy then kissed the redhead on the forehead.

Getting off of Willow, Buffy quickly raced to take care of the necessary "decorations" she needed to put up to make the building a more…"vampire friendly" home. "Oh, and while you're at it, why don't you tie Mom up too. And Willow…" The blond vampire gave her mate a meaningful stare, "I promised you Giles, but Mom is all mine. Sorry, but it's a family thing, you know?"

Willow suddenly got an annoyed expression and cursed under her breath, "Just like it's a 'Slayer thing', right?" Buffy didn't miss it, and Willow knew she hadn't, but for friendships sake, Buffy only responded with a short "What was that?"

"Nothing!" Willow squeaked, glad for the obvious reprieve. Buffy only gave her another meaningful stare and then proceeded down the stairs to prepare their temporary new home.

Some thirty, thirty-five minutes later, Buffy was finished with the "decorations" and Willow was just putting the messed sheets into Giles' at home washing machine. The body parts were obviously a late dinner/breakfast for the two new vampires. Suddenly, the Slayer and Willow both shivered at the exact same time, as though something had chilled the air, when actually it was the opposite that was true.

"What was that?" Willow muttered, somewhat surprised by the sensation that had just run through her undead body.

"Somebody walking over your grave," Buffy muttered in response as she sat on the couch in the darkened room. She was glad to be in from the sun, but after such an eventful night, first of all dying, again, followed by turning into a vampire and then killing a human for the first time…her first feeding. Finding out her true feelings for Willow, finding that Willow not only reciprocated her in them, but was more than willing to join her for the rest of eternity in sharing that forbidden and newly awakened love. And everything after that, it had been quite a night. Nothing like she had expected it to turn out when it began. Vaguely remembering through her faded memory, she regressed to barely twelve hours before, when she had still been human…

12 Hours before:

Buffy was sitting on Giles couch, getting ready to go out for the nightly patrol. Tying her shoes. For the seventh time. Apparently it was all she seemed capable of doing for the time.

"Buffy?" Giles voice drifted up from the bowels of his basement. Jerking her head up out of her depressive thoughts, mostly revolving around Faith's failure (as she personally liked to think of the murder that the second Slayer had committed one night while they were both out on patrol) and Angel, and her feelings over Faith, and her feelings over Angel, and how Willow was getting moody around her, which was never a good sign, and how Angel looked that morning when she had left, with longing puppy-dog eyes that nearly killed her to keep walking away. Well, most of her thoughts seemed to be centered on Angel.

"Huh? What?" she started as Giles came up the stairs.

"Are you ready to begin your patrol for the evening?" Giles asked, overlooking her obvious distraction.

Nodding, the blonde Slayer stood to her feet, her boots finally secured the way that she felt they should be, and grabbed her usual gear for the night; five wood stakes, a cross necklace, two bottles of holy water, and Mr. Pointy, her favorite stake, a long dark piece of redwood that was sharpened to a very fine point and easily slid down her jacket sleeve, out of sight. "I'll be back around midnight or so Giles, but don't count on it if I get caught up with a demon or some new plot to destroy the world." Buffy sarcastically commented, as was her want, as she walked to the door.

Giles, grinning at the humor his Slayer liked to use, smiled silently and nodded his head, adding in his piece, "Well, all the same Buffy, do be careful. I plan on staying here tonight if you need to find me, all right?"

Grinning warmly, Buffy, with a lively twinkle in her eye nodded and muttered something about the elder Watcher not worrying about anything, but she was already out the door.

10 hours before:

Buffy was just finishing up in Restfield cemetery having seen few vampires so far this short night. She was hoping it would stay this quiet so she could get off early and swing by the Bronze to see Willow, and Oz if he was there.

'Wait a sec,' Buffy thought, 'shouldn't that be the other way around? Oz is the one always at the Bronze because he plays there with the band. Willow's always there to watch Oz.'

Buffy could no more stop the raging flash of jealousy at that thought than she could understand it. It had all begun the night that that evil vampire version of Willow had shown up. Will had gotten it back together with Oz, Angel was back, and because Xander and Cordy had broken up, the X-man, as Faith liked to call him, was back to worshiping the ground she walked on. Not that she had ever minded, she just had never seen Xander that way.

Of course Faith's constant insinuation of how cute Xander was never helped. And being with Angel was, if anything, worse. She still felt the longing of passion for the re-souled vampire every time they were near each other. And every time she looked into those sorrowful puppy-dog eyes of his, she could feel herself falling in love with him practically all over again. But she knew in her head, which was teaching her heart, that they had to stay away from each other. For the good of mankind, not to mention her own sanity, they had to stop being together.

Buffy sighed, slowing her steps as she entered the next cemetery. She frowned as she moved her thoughts over to her recent unexplainable emotions over her best friend. Willow. Just imagining the elfin redhead brought a sigh of joy and mixed passion to her lips. She closed her eyes to deepen the image, bringing the air of long breath and the emotions with it. Mistake.

While Buffy was in 'Willow land' she had stopped walking, just standing there in the middle of a graveyard with her eyes closed. Three vampires, that "just happened" to be out that night, saw her enter the cemetery and figured themselves lucky. They, having just finished a feeding, could either use her for their own pleasure that they would otherwise have to pay for, and with a vampire no less, or they could fill themselves up, or they could turn her and use the whole sire-power-over-fledgling thing and make her into their slave or something like that.

Following silently behind the blond girl, they circled around her and then spread out, planning on ambushing her. When she just stopped and closed her eyes, they all shared a perverted smirk and attacked.

The leader, a tall decent looking guy with light brown hair and was buried in a very nice Armani chocolate brown suit, hit the girl in her front with a tackling shove. The other two quickly moved in and fought to hold her down. They were no more surprised than their leader when she actually managed to shove them off of her.

Buffy was cursing herself up and down, left and right at herself. '_Stupid, stupid, stupid!'_ she thought as she shoved the two flunkies that were dressed, badly at that, like high school freshman. Jumping to her feet, she saw the one that had tackled her, who looked a little older and had a much better fashion sense. 'Must be the leader,' she surmised. Take him out, and the others should be easier.

She advanced quickly and snapped out a powerful kick with her right foot. She hadn't expected him to dodge it though. When he lunged in for an even more powerful punch, she knew she had to dodge, and she had just started to, when his fist connected with the side of her head.

Shaking it off, Buffy whirled around and landed a solid roundhouse against the side of his head. After the warm-up had finished, they began trading blows faster than 8-year-olds trade baseball cards. When the two flunkies tried to sneak up behind her, she surprised the vampires again by dodging a punch, which sent the leader off-balance for a moment, and quickly staked the approaching vamp on her left. Three seconds later, he was screaming dust.

Not even hesitating after the confirmed kill, Buffy snapped a back kick at the vamp on her right, knocking him back to the ground. She quickly did a cartwheel, for show, and staked him before he could even think about getting back up.

Yet before she could turn back around to deal with the leader, he pulled her up by her hair, and kicked her five quick, and painful to add, times in her chest, knocking the breath out of her. She managed to catch the leg before it could complete a sixth kick, and tripped up the vamp. She rolled away, coughed a couple times and tried to catch her breath.

The vamp-leader however had quickly gotten to his feet. During all of this, not a single word had been traded between them. Buffy, one akin to the bantering jibe, decided to try and stall for a little time. "So, you come here often?" she tried. 'Ok, I know, I know, lame, but the whole 'first thing that pops in your head' thing.' she chided herself.

To her good fortune, the vampire actually paused and answered with a voice with no clear accent, other than American that is. "Oh, about every night or so often. My graves just over there. Good memories. That sort of thing. I think I'm going to enjoy this," he mused as he continued stepping closer to her.

Buffy just shrugged from her cradled position on the ground, having caught her wind again. "Well then, I guess my line now is, 'Over my dead body,'" she punned out. Before the vampire could even respond to that, she swept his legs out from under him again and rolled over once and brought her foreleg crashing down onto his chest.

Buffy then flipped to her feet, and just as the vampire was getting up from the ground, she staked him through the ground. Before the vamp was fully dust though, she added, "Or yours."

As the vampire turned to dust and was scattered in the air, she dropped her stake and sunk to her knees. She was having trouble breathing, and as she felt around on her chest she could feel the increased pain where there were cracks in her ribs. Hopefully, she mused, they would be healed by tomorrow afternoon.

The next thing Buffy knew, she heard a rustling sound somewhere behind her and when she turned to look, all she saw was a blur of movement, and then felt something heavy and painfully large strike her to her old friend the ground. When she saw the yellow eyes and the fangs, she immediately knew she was in trouble.

She tried with all her strength to get a grip on her attacker and shove him away, like she had the others, but the fight she had just finished had drained her, and she couldn't summon the necessary strength.

In the next moments, Buffy felt the very sensation she had only ever felt once before, and had nightmares over ever since she had learned of her destiny as the Vampire Slayer. She felt the pain, the violation of her life force, her blood being taken from her. Then it stopped, and she could barely feel at all, but the open wound at her neck stung sharply, keeping her conscious.

When she managed to open her eyes, she saw that the vampire she had never seen had cut open his arm and was trying to force her to drink _his_ blood. '_He's trying to _turn _me!'_ she thought with alarm. She did everything she could think of and more to stop the terrifying fluid from entering her mouth. Keeping her mouth shut, but she still needed to breath. Spitting it out, but more always managed to find its way in. And struggling to turn away and reach her dropped stake. Not enough strength left.

And then she lost consciousness.

9 hours before:

When Buffy awoke again, the whole world was different. And the pain, from her attack, from the fight, her broken ribs, they were all gone. Not to mention strength.

She sat up slowly, as to not bring attention to herself. When she looked around, she saw the vampire that had attacked her from behind. Quirking an eyebrow, she appraised him. He had his game face on and had a military crop haircut from raven slick black hair. His clothes spoke of a fashion sense, if at all possible, ten times worse than Xander's. She was so disgusted that she couldn't even bring herself to look at it.

"Hungry?" he asked in a pathetic-sounding hiss.

Looking at her surroundings, surprised to see she hadn't been moved, Buffy realized that she was in the same cemetery. Catching a glimpse of something on the ground, Buffy smiled seductively at the vampire whom she assumed, correctly, was the one that turned her.

Purring, "Why as a matter of fact, yes!" And then moving with speed greater than she had ever imagined, Buffy grabbed the stake and slammed it home into her sire's chest. As he was dusted he muttered a "But…!"

'_Jerk_' she thought to herself as she stood up and dusted herself off. Looking around, Buffy smiled as she knew exactly where she was, and at the same time that she really was hungry.

'And I know just where to get some pickup…' she thought to herself, smiling as she walked along.

Present:

"Buffy!" Willow was shouting from the basement.

Startled out of her memories, Buffy raced as fast as she could to the lower level. "What is it Willow?" she asked, concern in her voice. When she saw what the basement had been transformed into, she had her answer. She couldn't help but to smile at her little imp for doing this for her.

Before her was a B&D's wet dream, fitted with all of their wishes come true at the same time.

"Will, where…where did you find all of this stuff?" Buffy stammered as she stepped into the subterranean dwelling, touching chains along the walls, harnesses and straps hanging from the ceiling, and against the far wall…was something that caught Buffy's voice in her throat.

"Oh gawd, Willow," Buffy hissed as she came up to the weapons rack, eyeballing, but not touching yet, the dangerous devices resting on the wooden and steel shelves.

"Do you like it?" Willow asked a little apprehensively, sounding a bit like the 'Old' mortal Willow.

Buffy turned to her vampire lover and gave her all of a stern look she could muster at the moment before breaking out into an infectious and genuine smile. "Are you kidding me? I LOVE it!" the vampire shouted.

Then she got stern real quick, but still favorably eyeballing the weapons rack, and asked, "But answer the question Will, how did you set all this up and where did you find it all? I was under the impression that catalogs had stuff that you had to _order_ from, which then took a number of days to months to actually come and . . ."

Willow interrupted her by placing a single finger over the blonde's motor mouth. Smirking in a way that she knew Buffy loved to be looked at, Willow answered her, "I was kinda surprised too. At first I thought Giles had a closet kinky side, kinda like I did. Then I realized it was probably stuff he had for either Faith or vampires or demons he wanted to interrogate. That made a whole bunch more sense than the closet kinky side, cause you know…Ewww!"

Buffy rolled her eyes in agreement, "Tell me about it!" she moaned.

Just at that moment, with their incredibly acute hearing, they heard footsteps approaching from the patio of the townhouse they were currently in. They heard the person, still too far away to determine who or what, though safe to say not a vampire, pace back and forth a few time, and then just stop in front of the door. Buffy gave her lover a lopsided grin before deeply kissing the redhead in a kiss that was as much meaningfully as it was literally, breathless.

"Giles is home," they said together in an ominous voice that spoke of deep foreboding for the Englishman Watcher.

END


	70. Challenges Conti

Challenge 3: _'HP as DC/Marvel style' fanfic collection _

Harry Potter as Marvel Style

"Doctor Strange/Potter"

_What if the prophecy was made to a different Sorcerer than Dumbledore, by a different Oracle than Sybill Trelawney?_

"Why did you summon me, witch?" Doctor Stephen Strange demanded as he appeared via mystical portal into the realm of the one known as Madame Webb.

"I am no more a witch than you are a wizard, my dear Doctor," the blind and paralyzed seer countered. "And yet here we are."

Strange frowned, but drew his cloak around him and sat before the enigmatic oracle across from her customary and highly unique tarot card table. "Nevertheless, my question remains."

"You've become more deeply involved with the happenings across the pond than most others realize," the Madam stated as she turned over a card at the center of the pattern that was nameless but the image looked just like him. He scowled and resolved to see about increasing the strength and complexity of the wards and mystic protections around himself and those closest to him, emotionally speaking. "Not to worry, none others have noticed. Yet."

"So this is a warning?" the doctor inquired.

"A warning?" she repeated. "Yes. And something more." She flipped over another card and if the name on the card didn't say otherwise he would have sworn it was a picture of Merlin himself. As it was, he recognized the name more easily than he did the image; DUMBLEDORE. She placed the card next to his. And then she turned over a third card. The Death card. Except the name kept changing, and with it the image as the dark cloaked figure went back and forth between holding a scythe and a snake, it said DEATH and then FLIGHT OF DEATH. It was easy enough for Doctor Strange to recognize what that card represented precisely.

Madam Webb was speaking once more, drawing and placing face down a number of cards in a very specific staircase-like pattern. "The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches. Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies. And the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not. And either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives. The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies."

As she spoke, she turned over each card in the staircase that Stephen Strange only realized after she was done that it was not a staircase, but a lightning bolt made of cards. The Magician, the Tower, the Fool, Judgment, Justice, the World, and the Emperor. Names aside, each card had hidden meanings and depending upon where you started the path, the message could mean a great many things.

"Who is the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord?"

"Well, that is the question, isn't it?" the blind woman remarked, a touch of humor in her voice. "There are three options, but the choice lies in whoever the Dark Lord marks as his equal."

"That inbred bastard won't take any chances on anything. He'll kill all three options, and I have no intention of allowing him to kill the other two just to find out which one will one day be able to rid the world of such evil. What are the three options? I'll protect all of them myself if I must!"

"You misunderstand, my dear Doctor," the old woman smiled wanly at him from beneath her blindfold. "Think it through. Use that mind of yours you are so proud of, before you were ever the Sorcerer Supreme, you worked out diagnosis with data. Now you must interpret a prophecy in much the same way. Work it out for yourself. And then see how you do... compared to the other two."

With that said, Madam Webb, the table, the chairs, the whole dimension faded into violet smoke, leaving Doctor Strange standing alone in the study of his Sanctum Sanctorum. He didn't bother with being angry at the oracle for being able to penetrate the wards of his most secure and secret sanctuary. After all, whatever it was the Madam used, it clearly wasn't standard magic and sorcery, and she was not an enemy of Stephen or any of his allies. No, instead he got angry with her over leaving him with more questions than answers, and only a vague riddle of a clue to gain those answers with.

Neville Longbottom, Harry Potter, and the Weasley's next child, whom would be born the following year. Their seventh child, in point of fact.

Voldemort wasn't going to wait a year, however, Doctor Strange knew. From his own experience with such things, Stephen strongly suspected that it would be the Weasley's child. From what he had discovered about the family, their lineage, and the fact that both father and mother were seventh in their respective generations, it simply made more sense. Even if it was a girl instead of a Seventh Son, the child would be powerful and potentially as talented at the magical arts as Stephen himself, or even his best student, Clea.

Dumbledore, however, he had a strong suspicion that he would actually choose the Longbottom Heir to be the Chosen One. He'd only met the man a few times, but it was easy to gain an impression of the man just by examining the choices of his life. He might have been the leader of the Order of the Phoenix and perhaps even the 'Leader of the Light' opposing the 'Dark Lord', but he was a Pureblood bigot of the worst sort Strange had seen since before he became the Sorcerer Supreme. The Longbottoms were an Old Family, Pureblooded to the last drop, back ten generations or more. Same as the Weasleys in point of fact, save that the Longbottoms were rich where the Weasley's were poor.

There was nothing remarkable about the Potters. They were an Old Family, same as the other two, but no more Pureblooded than Stephen himself. Odd though... he'd traced them back to a similar lineage as he had the Weasleys, but the branch off had been centuries, if not millennia before, and there had been no intermarriage since then apparently. Financially, they fell exactly in the middle of the two. Blue collar, Strange used to hear the nurses call it when he'd worked at the hospitals. Same as the Weasley's, just higher above the poverty line, and with a number more properties under their name. The only thing remarkable about them were the parents of the child that may or may not be the Chosen One. James Potter, a Transfiguration master according to rumors, and an experienced Auror that had faced the Dark Lord and escaped with his life on at least three occasions. Lily Evans Potter, a First Generation Witch, who had the highest ranked grades out of Hogwarts in at least ten generations, if not more.

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how you looked at it, it wasn't up to either Strange or Dumbledore to choose their future champion. It was up to Voldemort to choose.

Halloween, 1981

Stephen ported into the revealed location. The moment after the Potter home appeared in his mystical senses, he was opening a portal and stepping through. By then, it was far too late. The wards, _the_ Ward that Strange had assisted Lily Potter in erecting to protect her home, fell only after what they had been designed to protect was no longer there _to_ protect. James was dead, but not without a hell of a fight that Doctor Strange himself would be hard pressed to match. Lily died protecting Harry. In her hands was the charm that the Doctor had given to her himself, and powered with the blessing of every agent of Death that he could find. That is all that Voldemort would use against his targets, Strange was sure of that. The Death Curse. Blocking Death with Life only created more death. Blocking Death with Death however... well, there was a chance.

Harry Potter was alive. And he had a scar, still bleeding, but healing over now, in the shape of a lightning bolt.

While Stephen had been dreading the events of this night, he'd been prepared for them for the longest time. He didn't hesitate to gather the hair, blood, and skin scrapings from both James and Lily and then summoning all the Death gods he could name, with the necessary sacrifices already performed weeks beforehand, and brought forth the spirits of James and Lily Potter, not as ghosts, but as spirits merely to commune with.

"Stephen," Lily smiled sadly at the Sorcerer Supreme, standing over her own corpse.

"Strange," James nodded, his mouth set in an angry line as he looked back and forth between the Doctor, Lily's body, and Harry.

"James, Lily," he nodded his head solemnly towards them, folding his hands before him. "I have only three questions and I shall let you rest, knowing that whatever wishes you have _will_ be carried out."

"Thank you for that Stephen," said Lily's spirit.

"Ask your questions," said James's spirit, with more than a bit of frustration. He didn't want to be dead yet. He wanted to raise Harry with Lily and give him lots of brothers and sisters. But that wasn't going to happen now, was it?

"Who do you wish to raise Harry, and execute your Last Will and Testament?"

Lily and James exchanged brief looks. James answered first.

"We named Sirius Harry's godfather, and Alice Longbottom his godmother. But Sirius..." James's spirit sighed. "Sirius is not going to be a good father right now. Not for a long time. I say take him to the Longbottoms."

"Except that Neville was a target as well, James," said Lily's spirit. "No, that would not be wise, having Harry being the target of whatever remains of... of _his_ forces."

"There's always Dumbledore..." suggested James's spirit.

"NO!" both Doctor Strange and Lily's spirit protested this suggestion vehemently.

"All right, all right already!" the spirit of James Potter exclaimed, holding up his hands to keep them back. "If I may ask, why not?"

"You just said Sirius would not be the best choice because he could not be the best father figure for Harry right now," Doctor Strange pointed out. "Dumbledore is old enough to have great-great-grandchildren... but he doesn't even have one child. Not even adopted. If Sirius is a bad choice for the moment, Dumbledore is the worst choice for all of eternity."

"I agree," said Lily's spirit, "Whenever we talked about the Prophecy, he always looked at me funny. Like I... or Harry given I was pregnant at the time, was something he wanted to inspect and use. Like a tool or an object. He wasn't seeing me, or our child. He was seeing his Chosen One."

"I'm afraid, my friends, that I must admit I found myself thinking like that at times as well," Doctor Strange admitted, "but I never, ever allowed that to blind me to the fact that both of you, Harry, Frank, Alice, Neville, Molly, Arthur, William, Charles, Percival, Fredrick, George, Ronald, and Ginevra are all real people with real lives... and you deserved to live out those lives without fear or persecution. The full protections around the Longbottoms and the Weasleys are still in full effect, I assure you and I fully intend to leave them in place for the rest of my days and beyond if I can do so."

"Never really understood why you thought Ginny Weasley could be the Chosen One," said James's spirit.

"Old calendar," was Strange's only reply.

"What about you, Stephen?" asked Lily's spirit.

"I'm sorry?" Stephen Strange, dedicated bachelor and allergic to children for his entire adult life, exclaimed.

"Hmph," James smirked and crossed his arms. "It would serve your right too. And no hiring a nanny and ignoring him. You'd have to actually raise him. In mine and Lily's place. But I agree. In answer to your questions, Sorcerer Supreme of the Realm of Earth and Midgard, we want _you_, Stephen Strange, to raise our son and execute our Last Will and Testament."

"I concur," Lily giggled.

Strange felt a heavy weight settle over him and no matter what he did, he could not get rid of it. With a heavy sigh, he asked his next question.

"How do you want Harry raised? In preparation for his destiny, or... as a completely normal boy, with absolutely no knowledge of tonight's events, or even magic at all... or as a normal wizard of your world?"

Again, the dead parents shared a few looks between each other, before looking only at Harry, who was smiling and waving at them, trying to get them to play with him. He was feeling happy, seeing his parents again, after all the excitement and scariness of earlier, the tears drying on his cheeks completely forgotten.

"Why not all three?" said Lily's spirit. "Let him be his own man as he grows up, and yes, allow him to go to Hogwarts. We didn't pre-pay seven years for nothing after all. But also, Stephen, give him the knowledge, the weapons that he'll need to survive and win."

"For when his destiny comes looking for him," said James's spirit darkly.

Doctor Strange nodded his head and asked his final question.

"Would you consent to becoming Harry's Guardian Spirits? Or Guardian Angels as the vernacular would say?"

"Do you even need to ask?" they both said together.

Doctor Stephen Strange, the Sorceror Supreme of Earth, quickly cast the spell and it was done. The spirits faded away, leaving Doctor Strange with a sniffling and soon to be crying infant toddler.

10 Years Later

Harry Potter appeared through the portal onto Platform 9 3/4 and looked around. Of course the portal in this instance was the one he had opened up from the Sanctum Sanctorum in New York City, New York, USA, and not the one in the side of a pillar part way between Platforms 9 and 10 of Charring Cross in London, England. He shrugged under his, deactivated, Cloak of Invisibility, bound by a clasp fashioned from a number of items Harry's father had collected for him around the time that he'd been adopted. Such items happened to include the locket of Salazar Slytherin, the melted down gold of the goblet of Hufflepuff. The main focusing jewel, which Harry used much the way his father used the Eye of Agamato, happened to be the stone from the ring that had reportedly been Slytherin's as well. The decorative jewels all around it were actually from Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem, as were the silver highlights. Beneath the cloak, Harry wore his Hogwarts Uniform, minus the hat, plus a few accessories here and there.

Harry was carrying a trunk-styled briefcase, which was actually his trunk shrunk and modified to be as mobile and lightweight as your standard empty briefcase. Looking up and down the busy platform, he briefly pulled up the hood of his cloak, activating the invisibility and then jumping down off the platform and going around to the other side of the train and entering from that side. Once he was in the tight space quarters of the train's hallways and compartments, he pulled down the hood and started looking for a compartment. He was surprised to see how packed the place was already, as more than half the students were either still on the platform, or hadn't even arrived yet. Finally he found one empty compartment near the back and settled himself in.

Only to be disturbed out of his meditations by the police scanner he had in his watch going off. Not all of his accessories were magical in nature. A consequence of being the son of a man who was friends with Reed Richards, Tony Stark, T'challa of Waconda, and Hank Pym.

Listening to the report, Harry only glanced out the door into the hallway once before closing and locking the door, and then opening a portal as he drew up the hood of his cloak and activated the charms on his shoes, which had been a gift from Heracles and his uncle in fact. The uncle went by the Roman name Mercury, and the Greek name Hermes. It took Harry the longest time to get used to the little winged shoes.

Flying through the portal, ignoring the flash of light shining from his locked compartment upon his departure, Harry instead found himself in the middle of a high speed chase... between a bunch of police cars and a helicopter trailing a bank vault safe. Harry just hovered there for a moment and took in the scene. Then he asked, incredulous, "_Really_? I mean, _REALLY_?"

With a sigh, and invisibility cloak active, Harry trailed along below and behind the hanging vault and cast a brief tracking spell, and then attached it to a portal spell, putting the vault right back where it came from. Without the added weight, the helicopter suddenly gained a surprising amount of altitude, and even Harry had trouble keeping up, until he opened another portal and put himself right in the path of the flying machine. By that point, he only had three seconds to do anything. Thankfully, he only needed two.

Another portal opened up right in front of Harry, one large enough for the Helicopter to fall through... and straight into the empty parking lot directly below them. Harry had caught sight of it just before he'd ported himself and had already prepared both portals before doing anything. Magic was nothing to make light of, and could be extremely dangerous if ever used without proper planning and proper awareness of the situation. These facts had been hammered into him since he could walk and talk. Fortunately, the gas tanks only ignite and explode in movies, and Harry had angled the portal so the tail end of the helicopter landed first and without that, the criminals could not control their craft and crashed it completely into the concrete. And then they blew up their own helicopter from the inside and seemed to be looking for another getaway vehicle, and taking a cop car didn't seem like too much trouble for these four baby brothers to the Hulk and Abomination.

Harry looked around worriedly. No other superheroes seemed to be in the area, or even approaching the area at the moment, and he was only a few minutes to being late. And he did not want to try opening a portal on a moving train... again. Still, it was clear that the cops pulling up around the four super-villains were outmatched, and Harry could no more leave people in danger than he could... uh, well let's just say that he couldn't do it and leave it at that. There wasn't much he _couldn't_ do with magic in all honesty, so the metaphor doesn't really work.

Taking a few moments to memorize the layout of the area and see the raw strength of the bank robbers, Harry quickly thought up a plan, took a deep breath, and then ported down to the wreck and started chanting and casting with his magic. Not actual spells, just using his magic as raw energy to manipulate certain factors. Like the gravity affecting the still spinning rotor blades of the crashed helicopter. And maybe the adhesiveness of the mercenaries boots to the pavement. And the tensile strength of the screws holding the blades to the rotor. Before the villains even knew what was happening, they found themselves stuck in one spot with all the blades of their crashed helicopter falling around them and sticking in the cement, creating a sort of temporary prison. Certainly none that would hold them for very long, let alone at all.

Harry removed the hood of the cloak, but at the same time triggered the powers of a number of his accessories, especially the clasp holding his cloak. To an outside observer, Harry's school uniform looked like a display of colorful armor and spandex that defied description, other than 'bright' and 'vivid', and his face was unrecognizable, yet clearly uncovered. And when he spoke, it was an adult speaking.

"Give up and go with the police without a fight... and you won't regret it," said Harry, noticing how at least three of the bank robbers actually jumped and looked over at him fearfully. Harry idly wondered who it was they were hearing, as his tie clip magically altered the perception of others, so he had no clue as to what he sounded like at the moment.

"You and what army!" the stoic villain growled, struggling to free his legs from where they were stuck.

Harry grabbed the clasp holding his cloak and shone the reflective light in each man's eyes. He didn't see what they saw, but he could easily guess, as when he pulled this trick only one thing happened. Whoever he shone the reflection of light from his cloak clasp to, they would see the spirits of all those that had passed on that they had even a slightest connection to. "This army!" he said with relish, despite seeing nothing but an empty parking lot.

Given the way all four of them started screaming, they were seeing a lot worse than what most saw when he did this. They were screaming and waving their arms about, trying to keep the ghosts of their victims from getting them, and screaming, and scrambling to get away and screaming louder and louder.

"Turn yourselves in and it stops," Harry told them.

"WE SURRENDER!" they all four screamed, and Harry released their feet and cut off the magic powering the army of ghosts only those four men could see. They stopped running when they reached the line of cops and looked back, seeing only the 'unknown superhero' standing there, waving calmly at them. They went quietly.

The moment the police had everything under control, Harry hastily opened a portal back to his cabin and stepped through. Only to fall over a young witch as she was struggling to put her heavy looking trunk in the upper rack. The two fell over each other and before the trunk could fall on them, Harry exerted his magic and quickly floated it all the way on to the upper storage rack.

"Are you OK? Sorry about that," apologized Harry as he helped the young girl to her feet. It was only after they were both standing that he realized she was about his age and like him also already wearing her school uniform.

"Where did you come from? What was that flash of light? And how did you move my trunk like that? I've been practicing magic all summer, but I haven't been able to do anything like that yet. I'm Hermione Granger, by the way," she held out her hand. Harry took it with a bemused grin and introduced himself, "I'm Strange. Harry P. Strange. And no, I'm not being funny, it's actually my name," he added when he caught sight of the look on her face.

"Oh," she blinked for a moment and then looked back and forth between the trunk and Harry's cloak. He took the moment to look her over. Her bushy brown hair covered her entire head and hung halfway between her shoulders. Her big brown eyes looked at him with a great deal of curiosity and she was grinning at him with full set of prominent front teeth. Harry grinned back at her, deciding that she didn't seem that much of a threat.

"Your Doc Magus! The son of Doctor Strange!" she suddenly exclaimed.

Harry quickly reevaluated his opinion of her and categorized her as dangerous, definitely dangerous.

"Uh... where did you hear that name? And no, I'm not."

"Mister Strange, usually you deny first and inquire after. You've all but confirmed my suspicions with just that!" she giggled.

Harry blinked and tilted his head curiously. "You didn't... Oh... crud," he sighed. "The Power Pack Adventures?"

She just nodded, still giggling.

"Never should have let Tony talk me into that," he grumbled.

The Power Pack Adventures was a multinational syndicated animated series that displayed fictional lives and adventures of the real life Power Pack, and the occasional "child hero" that shows up to help them out with their adventure of the week every other week. In addition to himself as "Doc Magus", Franklin Richards and his sister and a number of other kid and teen heroes, as public figures, showed up on the cartoon show every season. In spite of the fact that Harry had only ever teamed up with them and the Richards one time, and it was when they were being targeted for kidnapping by the Masters of Evil.

"You do know that the cartoon is entirely fictional, right?" Harry confirmed with the young witch, who was still giggling.

"Well of course!" she huffed suddenly, putting her fists on her hips. "It's a cartoon! Cartoons aren't real! Everyone knows that! But it's a lot more entertaining than the international news bits on America's Heroes."

"And I _don't_ go around calling myself Doc Magus! I'm just Strange, Harry P. Strange," he pompously pronounced. She started giggling again. He liked it when she laughed.

There was a sudden knock at the door. Curiously, Harry 'looked' at it and discovered that his new cabin mate had entered his locked cabin via the unlocking spell. Impressive, he silently mused. He went ahead and opened the door. On the other side were two boys, one with bright red hair, freckles, and smudge of something on his nose, and the other a chubby boy with brown hair and shy eyes.

"Hello," Harry greeted them.

"Hey," the redhead returned the greeting. "Everywhere is full up. You mind?"

"Not at all..." Harry gestured, but made it equally clear he was waiting for an introduction.

"Ron Weasley," the redhead nodded. "This here is Neville Longbottom. _The_ Neville Longbottom!"

One of the other potential Chosen Ones, Harry privately thought.

"Hi," the shy boy waved.

"Hello Ronald, hello Neville," Harry greeted them once more. "My name is Strange. Harry P. Strange. This is Hermione Granger. Care to join us for the journey to our future institution of magical enlightenment?"

Both boys blinked and went, "Huh?"

"Would you care to join us? For the train ride?" Hermione translated.

"Oh, sure!" Ron exclaimed, while Neville nodded enthusiastically.

A little while later, after the train had departed, and the snack cart had been by, there was another knock on the door. Once again, Harry chose to answer it.

"They're saying _Harry Potter_ is here in this compartment," the slick-haired blond stated the moment he was through the door. The two neanderthals that had been following him stayed out in the hall, simply due to the fact that they could not fit through the door frame at the same time. "It's true isn't it?" the boy looked around arrogantly at the occupants of the cabin, immediately dismissing Hermione and Ron as beneath his notice, and then Neville when he shied away.

"I'm sorry, but... who are you?" Harry asked, keeping better control of himself than he'd thought he would when this inevitably got out.

"Malfoy, Draco Malfoy," the slick-haired child held out his hand, but Harry ignored it.

"My name is Strange, Harry P. Strange. And to answer your eventual question, yes, the P stands for Potter," he stood and introduced himself.

The whole cabin gasped, while Malfoy just smirked and retracted his hand.

"I'd heard you'd been taken away by some idiot muggle who steals magic to fight fairy tale monsters and common criminals. Seems the rumors are true, eh, Potter? If you want to know how to best fit in and avoid the wrong sort," he glared at every one of Harry's new friends, "I can help you there."

Harry briefly considered his options. One, he could do what he wanted to do right now and snub the little snake and make an enemy of him for life, or until he saved his life, whichever came first. Two, he could do what he _really_ wanted to do, and open a portal to the underworld under his and his two gorillas' feet and never look back. It would seriously affect his karma and the Three Fold Law would be in full effect, probably sending Harry himself to the Underworld for however long it took him to get them out, or three times as long as they stayed there, whichever came first. Third... heh heh heh... His third option could be fun.

"Sit down," Harry pointed at his vacated seat, next to Hermione in fact. He had Neville squeeze in between Malfoy and Hermione and then brought the two standing out in the hallway one at a time and sat them on either side of Ron while he stood in the middle. Once everyone was seated, he took a deep breath and flexed his magic a bit, muttering a space-expansion spell under his breath as he paced back and forth inside the cramped cabin. Within a minute, there was over ten feet of space for him to pace in a full circle and enough space that all the children could have lain down on their seats and had enough space for a whole other person between them.

"This," he gestured at the expanded train cabin, "is but a small example of what my 'muggle' father who 'steals magic' has taught me to do with my innate magic. And no, he's never had to steal, borrow or take any amount of my magic. Not that he could. In fact, he did everything in his quite considerable power to teach me how to protect myself from having my magic ever used against me. Personally, I would have quite enjoyed studying magic under him for the rest of my life, but apparently he's only one man and only knows so much. Hogwarts can teach me more, or so I've been told."

"Now then. Magic. What is magic? It would be easier to answer what _isn't_ magic, and even then you might struggle to find an accepted answer. One thing we can all agree on, however, is that each of us can utilize it. It's a part of us, a part of our life, some might even say it is our life and vice versa. But apparently, as is common with human nature, the issue before us at this moment is whether or not having and being better, or having had magic as part of your bloodline for longer than others, does in fact make you better than other people who don't have magic, or are first generation magic users, or just aren't as good with it as certain other people. So lets have a minor debate here. Mister Malfoy, if you would please, present your arguments as to why it is that what you would be showing and helping me with is so vital, and then the others here will each take their turn."

"Uh... what? What is this?" Malfoy seemed to do a double take on what he'd been doing for the past minute or so and stood up to confront what he viewed as an elaborate attempt at calling him a liar.

"This is your chance to present your case, unbiased. I'm fully willing to listen to your point of view, but you have to be willing to give it. If you don't... well, that is of course your choice, but just imagine how that may be viewed, by myself and... others." Harry looked over at Crabbe and Goyle, who were stoically sitting and watching the proceedings with their arms crossed. Ron looked back and forth between them for a moment, and then quickly imitated by crossing his own arms and watching what was going on.

Malfoy, Draco blushed and then took a deep breath. He swallowed a gulp and began to speak.

10 Months Later

_"The boy, check the boy,_" the voice hissed.

"STOP RIGHT THERE POTTER!" the possessed professor screamed, spinning about.

"The name," Harry's voice echoed off the stone walls of the room housing the Mirror of Erised, "is Strange. Harry P. Strange." Harry had drawn up the hood of his cloak and was currently invisible. Having obtained the Flamel Philosopher Stone from his own reflection, he'd quickly decided that discretion was the better part of valor in this instance. Unfortunately, he couldn't open a portal inside Hogwarts, and if he made a break for the exit to the room, there was a large chance of him being hit from behind and he'd be right back where he started. That was when he felt an old, familiar pain in his scar.

"_Let me speak to him. I know where he is,_" the voice hissed.

"But master, you're still weak, you're not strong enough," the professor begged to thin air.

"_I have strength enough... for this,_" the voice hissed. With that said, the professor began unwrapping the turban around their head, revealing a whole new paradigm to the phrase 'two-faced'.

"_I see you Harry Potter. Dispense with your spell of hiding. It can no longer protect you from... Lord Voldemort._"

"My name," Harry said, allowing his anger to get the better of him for the moment, "is Harry Strange. You killed my father. And my mother. Prepare to die."

Harry then summoned the hell hound from above, as well as the now adolescent dragon he and Hagrid were raising, and Peeves the Poltergeist. He may not be able to open portals because of Hogwarts wards, but that said nothing on summoning magical creatures through a completely different means. He then activated some of his accessories, the ones he hadn't had to use since the day he left on the Hogwarts Express. Only after they were fully in place and active did he remove his invisibility and started casting every jinx and offensive charm that he had been taught this year. The Dark Lord possessing Professor Quirenus Quirrel, the Muggle Studies teacher, snarled and suddenly the man was actively moving and casting and shielding and attacking Harry's animal friends as well as himself. It was only due to the good luck of Harry's protection amulets and how he cheated by using a bit of elemental sorcery here and there that they were not immediately defeated. Not that it made that much of a difference. This was an experienced and very powerful dark wizard, with a unique advantage that he literally had eyes in the back of his head and could usually see and had seen everything Harry was throwing at him. Out of everything in fact, only Fluffy was giving the man any trouble at all. So Harry spent as much time defending his summoned creatures as he did attacking Voldemort/Quirrel, not that he even viewed it as a choice.

"_You think... you're a match... for me, Potter?_" Voldemort gasped as he shielded against a few mana bolts and attacked Fluffy, Norberta and Harry with a jet of flame from his wand.

Harry cast a large-scale vacuum sphere, extinguishing the flames, while Peeves came in from behind and gave the Dark Lord a wet willie followed soon after by an atomic wedgie.

"ARGH! Damn you Peeves!" Qurriel/Voldemort both screamed together.

Taking the opportunity while it presented itself, Harry unleashed his trump card and shown the reflection of torchlight from his Stone of Spirits into Voldemort's eyes. Except that Quirrel spun around at the last second and got the full blast. It didn't take long before he was screaming for his master's mercy and was dissolving into dust before Harry's very eyes. A bite from Fluffy, and a flaming spit ball from Norberta and it was all over for the Muggle Studies professor. Voldemort, however, wasn't giving up that easy.

A black cloud rose up from the corpse and began to fly straight towards the young wizard. If he had been anybody else, he might have been too shocked to move and let it do whatever it wanted to him. But he was Harry P. Strange, the son of the Sorceror Supreme of the realms of Earth and Midgard, and he didn't shock easy. With a snap of his fingers, the hell hound and dragon returned to their points of origins, and Peeves... well he sat back and started munching on some popcorn he'd pulled out of somewhere. Harry smirked and focused back on the wraith attacking him.

Spreading his fingers wide, he intoned every protective spirit and deity his father had ever introduced him to before calling on his personal two guardian spirits. His hands lit up with eldritch power as he held the Stone of Spirits in one hand and his wand in the other, wrapping the cloak tightly around him. He dodged the wraith's first strike and kept moving as the black mist never stopped for even an instant, homing in on him and the magic he wielded like a shark after blood. Only once the pair of silver deer, a stag and a doe, appeared at his side did Harry stop his retreat and unleashed the magic he'd been building up with his wand, casting the single ward-off-evil spell that wand casters had available to them. It was the third spell he'd learned to use with his wand, the first two being the shield spell and the light spell, with many others following after it.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

A shield of silver white light came into existence around Harry and his two spirit guardians. The black mist did not pause, not expecting to be stopped by such a spell. Imagine Voldemort's surprise when he bounced off the shield and slid around the sides, unable to touch the boy no matter what he tried. And then the shield began to push back and Voldemort found he had to push his entire being into just staying together rather than be blasted apart into an infinite fragments of darkness. He pushed back, but the boy's shield, and those two corporeal patroni pushed back harder.

"I've always wanted to try this variant of every spell," Harry suddenly commented with a disturbing grin. On either side of him, his guardians pawed the ground with excitement. "EXPECTO PATRONUM MAXIMUS!"

Voldemort screamed. Quite an impressive feat since he didn't even have a mouth or throat when he did so. He retreated immediately. He knew, no matter what was said about Horcruxes before now, that if he'd stayed and fought, his soul would be ripped to shreds and dissolved into less than nothing. He barely escaped the castle's ward boundaries before the wave of pure white magic obliterated every trace of evil and darkness within the entirety of Hogwarts' perimeter. When he finally found a host, a white snake ironically, he was much worse off than he'd been when first coming back to Hogwarts inside of Quirrel. Vowing never to waste his time and energy like this again, Voldemort slithered off into the darkness to hide away and regain his strength.

One Year Later

Harry didn't bother with speaking the words to open the door, he just blasted it, and the wards protecting it, straight out of the wall. On the other side, he ignored the imposing statues and visage of Salazar Slytherin and strode with purpose towards the front of the room where the other two potential Chosen Ones lay prone before one sinister being. For one moment, he looked like a Seventh Year student of Hogwarts, and the next he appeared ten years older, but still human looking. Two of Voldemort's Horcruxes, stealing the life force and magic of their 'hosts' to give them real bodies, merging into one.

Harry had been told since he was old enough to understand it that his father, Doctor Strange, had gone about shortly after adopting him, and collected most of Voldemort's existing Horcruxes, fragments of his soul meant to ensure his immortality. He found the Diadem of Ravenclaw in Hogwarts itself, the Gaunt Ring holding the Stone of Spirits in the Gaunt home in Little Hagelton, the Challace of Hufflepuff in the burned out husk of an orphanage that was treated more as a haunted house by the locals, and the Locket of Slytherin in a hidden cave along the coast. Looking closer around Ginny's neck, Harry scowled as he saw the very same locket, but this one was obviously the real thing. In Neville's hands was a worn, but unstained and looking better than it should, school diary with the initials T.M. Riddle embossed on the spine.

"Release them," he ordered.

"Make me," the fused Lord Tom Voldemort sneered.

Harry summoned the Locket and the Diary to his hands and spoke words of destruction. Other than his hands lighting up, and him expending a large amount of magic, nothing happened.

"Allow me to introduce my pet, Potter," the fused Horcrux spirit turned to the largest statue of Slytherin and hiss in Parseltongue, "_Speak to me, Greatest of the Hogwarts Four. Kill my enemy and devour my foe!_" Harry immediately activated the blindness spell, giving him the enhanced senses of the Daredevil, along with the same blindness. Temporarily.

He could feel it when the basilisk slammed into the floor from his hidden space in the statue, and then tracked it as it slithered across the floor towards him. It towered above him and 'stood' poised there. Harry casually looked up and grinned at it. This apparently ticked off the giant snake and it struck with its full speed, intending to devour the impudent mortal who dared look upon its gaze... and _not_ die! Fortunately, Harry's spell gave him the same reaction times as the man he modeled the spell after, again temporarily, and he had a mystic shield in place, stopping the snake cold against the invisible force that only Harry could detect. With more than a bit of relish, Harry levitated the Diary and the already-opened Locket up to the basilisk's mouth and impaled them on it's fangs. The master died before the pet realized anything had happened, but it was still too worked up to care, instead attacking Harry again and again and again.

Harry blasted it with a Lumos Maximus, point blank, blinding it. Then he conjured a couple of roosters and got them crowing in harmony, and before too much longer, the basilisk was dead and Ginny and Neville were waking up. Unfortunately, Harry's 'temporary' spell lasted for three days and it was a week before he could see, hear, smell, taste and feel normally.

"Captain Grandfather"

_What if Steve Rogers and Peggy Carter had more than a drink that night before the last mission? What if the child born from the union was raised in England and eventually took the name Evans? What if Steve Rogers was Harry Potter's last living relative? What if the Power He Knows Not has more to do with Steve's bloodline than Lily's sacrifice?_

"IS IT TRUE!" the shout echoed throughout the base as the door to General's secret office slammed open. Well, it wasn't really an office, and the fact that somebody was slamming it open meant it wasn't really secret. It was more a S.H.I.E.L.D. Ops Center, and the General in question was General Nick Fury, Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and he knew exactly why the Captain was barging in and what for.

"Is what true?" he asked, sounding afronted. Just because he already knew didn't mean he couldn't have a little fun with it.

Steve Rogers, known to the world as Captain America, surged forward and grabbed the man by the throat and lifted him bodily off the floor. Ignoring the sound of weapons being drawn and guns being readied, the super soldier drew the man close so they were eye-to-eyepatch and hissed out, "_Is. It. True?_"

"... Yeah," Fury choked out, and was immediately released to drop to the floor. After coughing for a bit and managing to recover his ability to breathe normally, and still feeling like he'd had the wind knocked out of him, the one-eyed general got to his feet and said, "Why do you think it is we didn't tell you, huh?"

"I'm going. Don't," said Rogers, pointing at Fury, "try to stop me. Follow me if you want, drop me off it you'd like, but don't try and stop me."

"Wouldn't think of it. The board is clear, for the moment, but I want you on call. Natasha and Clint will escort you. They're waiting on you in the Quinjet."

Steve shot his CO one last dirty look and then left the room without another word.

4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey

"This the place?" Clint "Hawkeye" Barton asked as they drove up to the English suburb home. "Quaint."

"According to MI6, yes," Natasha "Black Widow" Romanov answered from behind the wheel of their military issue Humvee.

"Stay in the car," Captain Steve Rogers ordered as he exited the rear. Natasha and Clint shared a look and then got comfortable as Steve walked up the driveway to the front door.

Few things in his life had ever truly frightened Steve Rogers, but he could honestly say that just knocking on the door in front of him was the scariest thing he'd ever done in his entire life up to date. Fighting a war? Part of the job. Crashing a giant Nazi-made super-weapon bomber in the North Atlantic? Piece of cake. Meeting his grandchildren and great grandchildren from a single liason with his not-quite-really girlfriend from over fifty years ago? He was absolutely terrified. He didn't eve know what he was going to say!

Suddenly, this wasn't looking like such a great idea.

He knocked on the door anyway. After all, he was Captain America.

A little boy, looking as skinny as he ever had pre-serum, answered the door. His hair was a black mess, he had the brightest green eyes he'd ever seen, and wore spectacles and oversized clothes. Steve stared at him, and he stared back up at Steve.

"Hello, may I help you?" the little boy asked politely.

"BOY! Who is it?" an angry voice called out from further inside the house. Steve couldn't help noticing how the boy flinched at the sound, but quickly got himself under control.

'Now why does this look so familiar?' Steve privately asked himself.

"I'm sorry, but may I ask who you are and why you are here? My Uncle doesn't like solicitors," the boy said.

"No," Steve winced at his obviously American accent, "No, that's not why I'm here. I'm... I'm actually hear to speak to... your Aunt?" he guessed.

The boy blinked, surprised. And then with a polite, 'Please wait here,' he closed the door and within a few minutes a tall woman that could have been Peggy's own mother or older sister, answered the door. "Yes? May I help you? I'm Petunia Dursley."

"Originally Petunia Evans?" Steve hesitantly inquired.

Squinting her eyes with mistrust, the woman replied after a moment, "Yes. Who are you?"

"My name is Steve Rogers ma'am. I'm an... acquaintance of Peggy Carter. Your biological grandmother I believe."

"Yes, what's this about? Only thing my father told me about her was that she spent some time in the States during the war. Is this some kind of inheritance issue? Should I get my husband?"

"I..." Steve really wanted to say something, but his brain stopped him before he could make a total fool of himself. "I'm actually related to her... her lover. Your father's biological father." It pained him to say it that way, but he couldn't deny the facts. And as much as he still loved her, he genuinely hoped that Peggy found someone to be happy with after he was gone. Someone to raise his son to be a good man.

"Oh," the woman seemed disappointed. "And? What is it you want? Hm? Money? A place to, how do you Americans put it, crash for a night?"

Surprised at the sudden hostility, Steve was taken aback. "No, that's not it at all. I just... I don't have much family left and I... when I'd heard about you and... your sister, well I..."

"You're one of _them_, aren't you?" Petunia suddenly snarled.

If Steve had been surprised at the hostility from before, he was shocked at this new level of pure aggression directed towards him. "What? I... One of who? The government? HYDRA?"

"One of..." she glanced back and forth, as though afraid to speak it aloud, "One of those magic people. _Wizards_!" she whispered.

Steve stared, then frowned and crossed his rather large arms across his barrel chest. "Who is the boy?" he asked suddenly, his gut telling him he needed to do something, right then and there to make things right.

"What?" she suddenly looked more scared than angry now.

"The boy who answered the door. Who is he?"

"He-he's my nephew," she stuttered.

"Where's his mother?"

"Dead. Drunk driving accident. We-we're taking care of him."

Steve frowned. He'd been in the presence of bullies covering their own asses to recognize a rehearsed story when he heard one. And magic... wizards changed things. He just needed to know one more thing, and then he was gone. He said as much to his grand daughter, though she would never know that. "I just need to know one more thing, and then I'll leave. Was Lily... your sister, also a... magic user?"

"Shh! Please, don't tell anyone, please I beg you!" the woman grabbed his arms and clung to him, desperate.

"Yes, or no," Steve said quietly, and much calmer than he'd felt at the moment. She fearfully nodded her head.

Steve moved past her and into the house. She screamed and the fattest man that Steve had ever seen stormed out from the kitchen with a baseball bat. "What is the name of my great grandson?" was all Steve said, standing in the middle of the Dursley's living room.

"Oh!" Petunia stopped screaming and gasped.

"What do you want with the little freak?" the fat man snarled.

Steve punched him. He wouldn't wake up for three days, at the local hospital, after going through three paper-thin walls and ending up in the back yard fence.

"Harry!" Petunia suddenly screamed. "Harry Potter! Take him! He's there! Take him and go!" She was pointing at a cupboard under the stairs that didn't even reach Steve's waist.

"If you weren't my grand daughter, I might do something about this. As it is, I'm taking custody of my great grandson. I'm sure some lawyers will be by later on to clear up the rest," Steve stepped forward and ripped the door out from the wall. Little Harry was sitting there on a cot, staring up at him with wide eyes filled with tears. They were not, however, tears of fear or sadness. They were tears of joy. Steve knew because he was crying too.

"I knew you'd come," Harry whispered as he hugged his grandfather, who was hugging him right back.

Steve was pleased to see Natasha just hanging up her cell phone as he and Harry came out the front door, only a small stack of school books in a backpack in the little boy's hands. "Fury angry?" he asked as he helped his grandson get settled in the back of the Humvee.

"He was just calling to confirm that there weren't going to be any body bags needed. As for everything else, the Dursley's will be receiving the Transfer of Custody papers with the afternoon post, which is only a few streets over, so they'll be here in about half an hour. As for Mister Potter, adoption process is already proceeding and we should have final confirmation by the time we reach Heathrow. After some shopping that is." She squinted in distaste at Harry's oversized and obviously hand-me-down clothes. She'd read the file and knew that the Dursley's had only one other child to take care of, and he was only a few months older than Harry himself. Not enough to warrant hand-me-downs instead of his own clothes.

"Oh, and lookie what I have here," Clint handed over a solid black and blue credit card, "An unlimited account funds credit card. So, where to?" He was now in the driver's seat.

Harry was smiling, and frankly he didn't care if he was being kidnapped or anything. His long lost family had come for him and rescued him from the Dursley's. He'd go practically anywhere at this point, so long as Grandfather Rogers was going with him. Steve looked over at the last of his family, that still mattered, and returned the boy's grin. He felt exactly the same way.

"Harry Parker/Peter Potter"

_What if Harry had a twin brother nobody knew about? What if the 'Potters' went into hiding in New York City instead of Godric's Hollow? What if Harry was raised by his other Aunt and Uncle instead?_

"Hey Pete!"

A dark head of hair and green eyes behind glasses looked up at who was calling. The boy grinned and waved, "Hey Harry!"

"Hey Harry!"

A second dark head of hair and green eyes behind glasses looked up. The boy grinned and waved, calling, "Hey Harry!"

The first boy turned to the identical boy beside him and exclaimed, "Hey Harry!"

"Hey Peter!" All three of them dissolved into giggles soon after that.

"So, how's boarding school?" Peter asked the first Harry, who wasn't his brother, but in fact was Harry Osborn, Peter's best friend since grade school.

"I don't know, why don't you tell me?" Harry retorted.

Harry Parker, Peter Parker's twin brother, rolled his green eyes and sighed. "It's not all it's cracked up to be I'll have you know." Absentmindedly, Harry reached up and rubbed the single difference between him and Peter as far as appearance went.

It was their first summer back after their first year at their respective boarding schools. Harry Osborn had gone to Mansfield Academy for Boys, located somewhere in Europe that none of the boys knew where it was exactly. Peter and Harry Parker, however, had both gone to a school named Hogwarts, located somewhere in Northern Scotland, but none of the boys knew exactly where. Harry had a normal time of it, and made a few friends and mostly done what he'd always done, let his father's money take care of any problems while he had a good time and tried to fit in. Peter and Harry, however, had found out their parents were magical and that they were both wizards, learned magic, fought trolls, and stopped the man that had murdered their parents from resurrecting himself. Harry had gone into Gryffindor House, Peter had gone to Ravenclaw House. Harry made friends with a wizard named Ron Weasley and a witch named Hermione Granger. Peter had made friends with a number of Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and Gryffindors, and exactly two Slytherins, both girls. But then again, Peter's name wasn't synonymous with 'hero' in the Wizarding World like Harry's was. Or rather, like his wizarding name of Harry Potter was.

It took a while, but eventually everybody in the school learned that Harry's name was Parker now, not Potter. Peter didn't care either way and was just grateful for the opportunity to make friends and learn something really cool. Harry felt the same way, at first. And then all the fame hounds started in on him, and then there was Snape and Voldemort proving he wasn't dead like everyone thought. Had thought.

Peter actually made friends with Ron and Hermione as well, it's just he didn't intimidate everybody else into either awe-struck silence, or undeserved respect/anger due to being famous for something he never actually did. Harry had also joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team, while Peter joined the Ravenclaw Quidditch team. Harry as Seeker, Peter as Keeper. Somehow, nobody knew how, the boy always seemed to know where the Quaffle was going and performed just as insane acrobatic moves to get between it and the goals that Harry used in catching the Snitch. Neither of them liked Snape.

As far as magic, well they were only graduated First Years, so they knew the bare basics, but after going through the gauntlet at the end of the year that ended with Harry facing off against their Defense Against The Dark Arts Professor possessed by Voldemort, they both felt they knew enough to truly be called wizards. Admittedly young and still in school wizards, but wizards nevertheless. They were glad to be home though, back with Aunt May and Uncle Ben.

Of course Harry didn't know anything about what Hogwarts really was, and as good a friend as he was, both the Parker twins knew they couldn't tell him anything about it.

"Hey guys," Harry suddenly said to the twins, a mischievous grin that reminded them of the Weasley brand of twins crossed his face, "Guess what?"

"What?" they both replied.

"No, come on, guess!" he laughed. "OK, I'll give you a hint. Guess who's back?"

Harry groaned as Peter suddenly perked up, his eyes wide and eager as he asked, "Mary Jane?"

"Come on Harry, might as well get the lovebirds reacquainted," Peter's twin said with no small amount of dread.

"That's not fair, I mean... I'm not that bad, am I? Besides, Mary Jane doesn't think of me that way."

"Yeah, we know, and whose fault is that?" Peter's best friend commented. "And yes, you're that bad."

"Peter, I'm practically a wallflower compared to you at school, and even I can talk to girls better than you can!" said Harry to his brother.

"In your mind, Hermione doesn't count as a girl," Peter reminded him.

"Who's Hermione?" Harry asked, suddenly interested.

"One of my best friends at school," Harry answered him. "Of which I'm sure you have plenty."

"Yeah, yeah, yuck it up why don't you. Why I oughta..." he made a fist at the boy who shared his name and his own best friend's face.

"Hi Mary Jane!" Peter called out and suddenly raced ahead. Both boys groaned and then stopped halfway through and suddenly perked up. Mary Jane's two best friends, Gwen Stacey and Felicia Harding were with her today. Harry glanced at Harry, they both shrugged then smirked and raced ahead to catch up with Peter. Parker immediately started chatting up Gwen, while Osborn spoke with Felicia. It was nice to be home.

One Year Later

Peter and Harry sat together silently on the bus as it pulled back up to their neighborhood. It had been an interesting year, and it promised to be even more interesting in the year to come. Last year they had been innocent children and they were almost sad that such times of innocent fun had passed them by. They'd spend days playing and hanging out with Harry Osborn, Mary Jane and her friends, and even go to Science Camp for the month of July, coming back in time for their birthday with Aunt May and Uncle Ben.

And then the House Elf showed up. At first even Peter didn't believe his brother when told about it. It didn't take much to ultimately convince him as they both got separate reprimands for the Department of Magical Affairs for using magic in public on multiple occasions. Dobby showed up the night of their birthday to take credit for that, and to deliver a 'warning' that "Harry Potter must not go back to Hogwarts". For the remainder of the summer, Peter and Harry weren't talking. The 'rest of the summer' of course lasted exactly one week, when Uncle Ben sat both boys down and talked things out. They were back to normal before they even left the States for Heathrow London's Portkey arrival point.

Except that for when they went to Diagon Alley with the Weasley's they happened to run across their new Defense Professor. Lockhart. They both disliked him immediately and immensely, especially when he grabbed Peter, calling him Harry Potter, and shoving him in front of the cameras. Although the fight between Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Weasley was enjoyable, from a distance that is. After that, they stayed with the Grangers until September First and it was off to Hogwarts. Where Mister Filch's cat Mrs. Norris was petrified the night of the Halloween Feast, along with half a dozen other people over the course of the year by the Beast hidden in the Chamber of Secrets and Slytherin's Heir, who Harry was accused of being just because he happened to be able to speak to snakes and was a Parselmouth. Only Peter, Ron and Hermione talked to him for more than half the year. Only to have it be revealed at the end there that Voldemort was in fact the Heir of Slytherin and had been controlling Ginny Weasley through her diary.

Peter had been stuck with Ron holding back Lockhart while Harry went on ahead to save the girl and vanquish the villain. He'd been even more worried than Ron was, if only because he knew what his brother was like when it came to saving other people. Thankfully it all turned out all right in the end.

They came home a little worse for the wear, but all-told a little more grown up than the year before. They hung out with Harry, noticed that Mary Jane and her friends were growing up as well, and went to Science Camp. They were on their way back to Aunt May and Uncle Ben's home, the bus stuck in traffic, when it happened. Harry casually noticed a stray black dog sitting at the side of the highway, staring at the bus, seemingly staring straight at him even. Suddenly, they heard the sound of distant thunder. Peter jarred awake, having been dozing beside his brother. Everyone on the bus recognized what the sound truly was. An explosion. A very close, and considerably powerful explosion. There was another sound, closer, louder. They could all feel the bus tremble beneath their feet. Somebody shouted and pointed out the windows. There, in the distance, they saw another explosion ignite. And it was right in front of them, on the highway. Two more explosions later, they could clearly see it was cars exploding, and that the cause was a super fight between two shadowy figures. No way to tell who versus who in the darkness.

"EVERYBODY OUT!" Harry ordered, moving to the Emergency Exits and kicking them open. Peter lead the way and helped the other children in getting off the road, while Harry organized them from inside the bus. Sooner than anyone expected, the fight reached the cars right in front of and around the bus.

Harry was just helping the driver out when he looked back at the front of the bus and saw a fireball heading straight for him. He leapt out of the bus and was engulfed in flames...

Two Years Later

Things had gotten hectic for the Parker twins since they'd unofficially met their godfather, Sirius Black. A man accused of betraying their parents to Voldemort. As it turned out, they discovered that the true traitor had been Peter Petigrew, Ron's pet Animagus rat. Of course that wasn't discovered until the end of their third year at Hogwarts.

For the entirety of their Third Year, both twins had been plagued by the threat known as Dementors. They'd worked half the year on the Patronus Spell with their Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher, a man named Remus Lupin who had been a close friend of their father's. He was also a werewolf, but again not something they had discovered until the end of the year.

Harry's Patronus, when he finally completed the spell, was a stag. A stag, according to both Remus and Sirius, had been their father's Animagus form. Peter's Patronus was, very surprisingly, a spider. It had freaked Ron out the most, who was deathly afraid of spiders, but so long as it drove away the Dementors, Peter wasn't going to complain.

The summer between their Third and Fourth years at Hogwarts was filled with much the same, except that Gwen Stacey had moved away. The Parker twins went to Science Camp and met one of the leading minds in the race for Clean Energy, Doctor Otto Octavius. He was absolutely brilliant and taught the boys a great deal and more than that, he encouraged their love of science. They did have some differences, however.

Peter loved everything and due to his Ravenclaw nature, he strove to study everything, all sciences, equally. Harry, on the other hand, found himself drawn to physics and, thanks to their magical secret, quantum theory. If any branch of science could even hope to explain the truth behind magic, it would be quantum mechanics. Physics, however, to Harry, explained how the world worked and strove to make sense of the forces behind what they saw and lived with every day.

Peter, therefore, generalized, while Harry specialized.

Near the end of summer, after they'd gotten back from Science Camp, thankfully this time without super villains tearing up the interstate while they were stuck in traffic, they got a letter from Ron, whom as it turned out was inviting them to the Quidditch World Cup. Uncle Ben came with them while Aunt May held down the fort, so to speak. Which is, of course, when the real trouble began.

Between the obvious, way-too-obvious prejudice against non-muggles, the Veela mascots for the Bulgarion team, and the "surprise" attack by "Death Eaters", the shock troopers of the Dark Lord Voldemort, and Harry being accused of casting the Dark Mark, which he did not, the Parker Twins had more than enough foreshadowing to know that it was going to be a bad year at Hogwarts. The fact was only punctuated by the announcement of the Tri-Wizard Tournament that would be held at Hogwarts that year.

Despite having no Quidditch for the year, the brothers were looking forward to a "normal" school year at Hogwarts, It wasn't until Halloween night that the bomb was dropped that yes, it was going to be a very normal year... for _them_!

On top of both boys swearing they did not put in either of their names, and the newly instituted policy of an age restriction, and Harry doing something to piss off a girl from the French school named Fleur Delacour, while Peter did something else to equally piss off Viktor Krum from the third school, _both_ of their names came out of the Goblet of Fire. And not both their names on one sheet of paper, but separate papers with their own names on each came out, totaling in four names rather than the typical three.

For the entire month of November, from the night of Halloween, to the evening after the First Task, Harry and Peter were not speaking. Ron was pissed at Harry for not getting him in on it and joined in on the silent treatment. Hermione, with all her friends fighting amongst each other, refused to pick sides and ignored the lot of them.

The Ravenclaws immediately rallied behind Peter and basically crammed him with everything the House of Ravenclaw had to offer and threw the Hogwarts Library on top of it like a cherry. Gryffindor, on the other hand, praised Harry for figuring out how to cheat the system and joined the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs in calling Harry a cheater, not that they considered it a bad thing, but still.

As such, Peter faced the first dragon in the Task, arguably the weakest, or at least the lesser specialized of the dragons gathered for the Tri-Wizard Champions' First Task. He walked out onto the field and was shooting NEWT level spells of all sorts at the thing, using ingenuity and his intellect to devise a strategy and on-the-fly tactics to get the dragon away from the nest and summon the golden egg to him. Harry... summoned his broom and flew circles around the beast, grabbing the egg like it was a Snitch. The other two Champions did, er, slightly less better, seeing as Fleur, the French Champion, got injured as she was escaping with the egg, and Viktor, the other Champion, got his dragon enraged enough it destroyed its own nest.

The brothers, and Ron, were all talking and laughing together by dinner time like the month of silence had never happened. Hermione slapped each of them on the head until they begged her to stop.

Come December, there was the Yule Ball to think about. Fortunately, being twins, the Parker brothers had another pair sharing their... House distribution. Oddly enough though, Harry went with Padma, who was in Ravenclaw, while Peter went with Pavarti, who was in Gryffindor. Ron procrastinated until the day before, having disbelieved Hermione when she told them she already had a date, and embarrassingly asked his sister, only to be told she was going with Neville!

Taking pity on his best friend, Harry asked Padma if there was anyone left and she introduced Ron to Third Year Su Li. She happened to be the only other Chuddley Cannons fan in the entire castle, if not the whole province.

After the Yule Ball, which wasn't so bad all told, they had the Second Task to look forward to. Neville introduced the brothers to Gillyweed, a rare substance that was grown in the Greenhouses that could, when chewed, transform a person into a "gilled human" Not quite a merperson, but definitely more fish than mammal.

Working together, and refusing to actually compete against the other, they rescued all the hostages, which happened to be Padma, Pavarti, Hermione, and Fleur's little sister, at once and damned the consequences. Which, in the end, was a good thing as Viktor's transformation had failed before he'd gotten halfway there, and Fleur had been forced to turn back by the Grindylows.

Months later, in late May, the Third Task was revealed and the Parker Twins entered the maze together. They reached the cup at the same time and grabbed it together, as they'd planned... and were transported to a graveyard where Voldemort used their combined blood to resurrect himself. Thankfully, he needed them both, otherwise they were sure he would have killed one of them, probably Peter, seeing as he wasn't the one with the scar everybody talked about.

They escaped, barely, thanks in part to Voldemort's overconfidence, the fact that there was two of them, and that Harry's wand shared the same core as Voldemort's, making them brother wands and taking full advantage of a rare and unique magical quirk that comes into play when brother wands fight each other.

They returned to Hogwarts and told everyone what had happened, only to be scorned and ridiculed by everyone save their closest friends and the Headmaster. When they left that year, both of them had had more than enough. Peter hated Ravenclaw for the "torture" they had put him through and to completely disregard him in the end. Harry hated... well pretty much the lot of them for every other reason he had to hate them with. They were actually looking forward to Science Camp this year, not that that wasn't true every year, but it was the first time that they didn't want to come back to Hogwarts after it was over.

That summer, that summer everything changed.

Part of Science Camp that year, was the opportunity to go into the city, New York City, and attend a live demonstration of the Neo-Genetics being developed at the university. The demonstration that both boys attended involved the study of artificial mutations in arachnids. Specifically spiders. Unfortunately, two of the spiders had somehow gotten free and no one had noticed, until Peter was bitten on the hand by one, and Harry bitten on the face by it's scarlet twin. To be clear, it bit him on his lightning bolt scar on his forehead.

The brothers brushed off the incident as just a bit of bad luck and after having met Aragog, one of Hagrid's old pets, the little mutated spiders that had bitten them didn't even register as odd. Besides knowing that the spiders had been mutated, the brothers merely thought that the only thing 'mutant' about them was their coloring. The one that had bitten Peter had been a mix of red and blue, while the one that had given Harry a new scar atop his old one was a bright scarlet in color.

It wasn't until they'd gotten home, feeling sick all day, that they discovered differently.

"Uh, Pete?" Harry mumbled, half-asleep but still sounding worried.

"Uh... yeah, Harry?" Peter said back, sounding the same.

"You're on the ceiling," he pointed out to his twin.

"And you're covered in webs," was the short reply.

A few short minutes of panic later, both brothers fell back on their scientific training and started experimenting, trying first of all to figure out what had happened to them, and secondly to find out what it was they could now do. Three common factors they both shared. They could adhere to solid surfaces and scale walls and ceilings like insects, or rather like spiders. Their strength and agility were significantly enhanced, each able to pick up one end of Uncle Ben's Buick, though no hire than their chest, and able to leap one hundred and some yards flat out, up to a height of nearly twenty feet! They also could... sense things around them. A sixth sense that was triggered mostly by danger, but could also be used to just get a feel for who and what was around them.

They also, in their experiments, noticed some differences. Peter was faster and more agile and his "Spider Sense" was way more acute than Harry's, and he also lost the glasses and seriously buffed up over night. Harry, on the other hand, had a slower reaction time, couldn't jump as high or as far, and looked the same physically speaking, though he too lost his glasses with near-perfect vision. He also had glands on his wrists that excreted a fluid that he could fashion into spider webbing. Peter had no such glands anywhere on his body.

That was an easy fix though, as they both analyzed everything they could about Harry's webbing and soon learned how to make an artificial substitute. They also fashioned mechanical wristbands that would help Harry control the fluid's secretion and it's use. A bit more experimentation, and watching a couple of Tarzan movies as well as a commercial for extreme sports, which included bungee jumping, gave them a few new ideas on what the full potential of this webbing could involve.

They made costumes, not that they called them such, mostly to hide who and what they were. Magic made it easy, and so long as they did it in the city, which couldn't be monitored for magic simply because it was Manhattan, they could get away with it. Harry made his entirely red, though to keep from looking like he was going around in a full body stocking, he tore the sleeves off an old sweatshirt and put that on over it. Peter, on the other hand, got a little creative, and threw in a bit of Ravenclaw blue with some spiderweb patterns over the red parts. They swung around the city, learning the ropes, literally, and in the process came across a couple of muggers and daylight robbers.

Harry, always the Gryffindor, acted first, while Peter backed him up and was the one to wrap up the criminals with his webbing, as they'd discovered that the artificial webs had a different feature than Harry's bio-magically produced ones. The artificial webs dissolved after an hour, while the bio-magical webs stayed around for _days_ and were impervious to most magic spells. Anything of the Curse or higher level was too much for whatever resistance it held, while lesser magic intensive spells still affected it, just with less and less efficiency the weaker the spell you used.

The next day in the newspapers and on the News, all anybody was talking about was the "Spider-Man" and the "Scarlet Spider". Harry and Peter looked at each other when they heard the names, shrugged, and decided they would be very busy for the rest of that summer.

TBC...?

"A Big Green Imaginary Friend"

_What if young 5-year-old child Harry Potter meets the Hulk when Bruce Banner comes to London? What if both Harry and the Hulk make the decision that they want to take care of each other rather than go it alone? What if Bruce agreed with both of them?_

"HULK SMASH!"

"Get'im Hulk! You're the strongest there is!"

'THEY LEFT HIM IN THE F* #ING CUPBOARD UNDER THE STAIRS! GET'IM HULK! HULK SMASH TILL THERE'S NOTHING LEFT TO SMASH!'

Hulk actually paused for a second in appreciation of the voice that had always advised restraint before now. Oh, now there was a nice idea. Thanks Bruce. It was nice having a cheering section too, although Hulk was extra careful not to let any of the flying debris hit Little Friend Harry.

Vernon Dursley groaned in pain. Hulk slammed his fist down into the walrus's fat gut a dozen more times. Squishy.

"DeadPot"

_What if the Merc with a Mouth was given the job of killing the Dark Lord, and was there the night Harry became the Boy Who Lived? What if he decided to turn Harry Potter into a mini-him? And what if Deadpool-influenced Harry still went to Hogwarts?_

Lord Voldemort and his most loyal servant walked up to what had been only a few moments ago an empty lot to the Dark Lord's eyes. Now he saw it for what it truly was, the house of those that had thrice defied him and one of only two candidates for fulfilling a prophecy about his defeat. He fully intended to destroy both children tonight, and with each, he would complete his ultimate goal and attain seven Horcruxes.

"You have done well, Wormtail," Voldemort complimented the ratlike man beside him. "I shall..."

"Enh! Wrong-o! You shall die, not, y'know, whatever you were going to say next..." a sarcastic and biting voice interrupted the Dark Wizard.

"Who dares?" Voldemort spun and brandished his wand at the interloper. Only to have it shot out of his hand, the firing of the gun echoing its shot up and down the street. That the bullet that destroyed Voldemort's wand also happened to perforate Peter Pettigrew's skull was just a happy coincidence.

"Yeah, I know, I know, I'm supposed to show up after you did the deed and then take the kid away from the middle of dull and dreary Surrey. Bleg! Pass! Besides, killing you is like killing Hitler, everybody wants to do it, at least once!"

"Who... What are you?" Voldemort hissed, backing away from the red and black clad assassin pointing a gun at him.

"Your worst nightmare," he rasped in a gravely voice. Then he coughed for a bit, sounding like he was going to puke, before saying in a much more normal voice, "Sorry, phlegm. Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah! I'm Deadpool and I'll be your killer this evening. I'd tell you to tip your waitress on the way out, but seeing as you're about to be very much not in a position to use modern currency, I'll skip that and get straight to the fun parts."

"You can't kill me, I'm immortal!" Voldemort shouted, trying to sneak past the anti-apparition wards he'd just spent the last fifteen minutes setting up so his targets wouldn't escape him yet again. He was really regretting doing that right about now. Especially making them so damn widespread!

"Yeah, funny thing that," Deadpool deadpanned as a number of random objects suddenly fell from the sky. He pulled the trigger just as they all lined up with Voldemort's head. His special ammunition he got from this old gypsy lady with a hunchback and a really bad lisp had given him a silver jacketed explosive round bullet with the name 'Tom Marvolo Riddle aka Voldemort' laser-etched into the casing, flew through each of the Horcruxes Voldemort had spent so many years crafting and hiding, destroying each one on its trajectory to Voldemort's head, where it then blew apart said head in an extremely gory and top-of-the-line-Hollywood Special FX manner.

"Hm, he looks pretty dead to me, what do you guys think?"

"Harry Odinson"

_What if Harry, after or during the Final Battle with Voldemort, died and was taken to Valhalla? What if he drew the eye of Odin and Thor and Loki and was adopted as the third Odinson? What if Harry joined the Avengers alongside his brother Thor, and wielded magic to rival Loki's, and what if he got a second chance at life with his friends because of it?_

Harry was dead. It wasn't Voldemort that finally got him. Nor, unfortunately was it old age, or even disease. And while he really, really wished for it, and pretty much deserved it after all the crap he'd been through in life, neither did he die while having sex with his harem of lovely and ultra-sexy witches. Heck, he didn't even have a harem of lovely and ultra-sexy witches to begin with. He did have one sexy, red haired wife, and what they say about redheads _IS_ true. Neither did he get to die while making love to her, either.

Nope, Harry, unfortunate soul that he is, died in the midst of battle. And if it had just been a mugger or a dark wizard with an itchy wand hand, he could understand that, he'd be unhappy and a bit broody about it, but he could understand it. No, instead, he somehow got mixed up in some kind of revolution between the forces of dark magic and the forces of light magic. Guess what side he was on?

In the end, it was a Dementor that got him. The actual cause of his death was a cutting curse that severed a primary artery, causing him to bleed out because he couldn't take the time to case one simple little medical charm he'd learned in his first year at the Auror Academy. But the Dementor distracted him from the cutting curse and was the reason he couldn't bother to fix himself after it happened. The wraith was now so much mist on the wind, having long ago learned that an over-powered Patronus worked just as well as a herd of them from multiple wizards to vanquish the dark creatures. So at least Harry took out the one that had got him so it was a mutual death. That was the least a warrior could ask for in the end, wasn't it?

As he lay there, dead, on the battlefield, the violence still going on around him somehow unable to touch him, a light opened up in the dark skies, and considering it was nighttime that was something to behold all on its own. Then the funniest thing happened. A really hot blonde, dressed in Viking leathers and furs, came swooping down on a flying horse. He knew it wasn't a Pegasus, or a Ibraxun, or a Thestral, or any one of the many breeds of flying horse he'd studied in school, so he stuck with the simplest descriptor; a flying horse.

She picked him up and threw him across her lap, not a bad place to be at all, and then they were flying away from the battlefield. Next thing he knew, he was in a drinking hall, being welcomed and sat down to a feast that rivaled anything he'd ever had at Hogwarts. Didn't take much to figure out he was in Valhalla. He got along with the guys plenty quick enough, but things weren't exactly like they said in the legends.

For one thing, Valhalla was the name of the Warrior Academy, like Hogwarts had been, it wasn't the name of the whole place. For another, he still had his magic and discovered he didn't need his wand anymore. And the real kicker, Thor and Loki were teenagers, as were most of the Viking 'gods', save for Odin, who was an eternally old man with one eye, but no more nor less than a 60 year old would be on Earth. After having met the family of gods, something Harry did impressed them and the next thing he knew, he was part of the family, and Thor and Loki and him made up the new Golden Trio.

They had loads of adventures, some of them even back on Earth. In battle, Harry could be as fierce as Thor and as cunning as Loki. His magic was no rivalry for the Trickster god, but the way he wielded it often surprised even the most talented magician in the place. But that was only the beginning.

The best news, however, was that, well... maybe not the _best_ news... Ginny too had died in that same battle. It was OK, their children had all been grown up for years by that point, the oldest even had a family of their own. Where he had gone to Valhalla and befriended Thor and Loki, she had become a Valkyrie and befriended Sif and the Warriors Three. It was quite a reunion when their friends had "introduced" them. Harry could believe that he'd even managed to give Thor an education or two, given that all of the 'gods' had been listening in for half the night outside the room where Harry and Ginny consummated their reunion. Odin even "renewed their vows" in a ceremony that had everyone in attendance.

And then Odin banished Thor to Earth.

Harry went with him, but only to protect him. Ginny stayed with the Valkyries and whenever she was on Earth for one reason or another, she and he would be sure to get together. And then Thor got involved with the Avengers.

Things just went crazy after that!

END.

Harry Potter as DC Style:

"Superdad"

_Superman hears a crying baby as he's flying over Little Whinging, in Surrey, England. It's baby Harry Potter sitting on the doorstep. Legal thing is to take baby to nearest orphanage. Smart thing is to take custody until the legal ramifications are sorted out. Superman takes the boy to the Fortress and discovers he's Homo Magi. Harry Potter grows up on the Kent Farm and considers Lois and Clark his Mom and Dad._

"Robin Mark VI"

_The Dursleys are visiting Gotham City while Grunnings is undergoing a merger with Wayne Enterprises. Dudley causes an accident that kills everyone except Harry. Bruce takes Harry in as his latest ward. Harry grows up as younger brother to Damian Wayne. He trains alongside all the others, but never dons a mask and shows talent as Homo Magi. Bruce has him tutored by Zatanna, Jason Blood, Doctor Fate, and Tarot. Harry goes to Hogwarts, but always returns to Gotham City and is always there for his family._

"Prince of the Amazons"

_Hagrid gets lost on the way to Privet Drive and somehow flies Sirius's bike over Thymescira. He accidentally drops Harry and cannot find him. Sirius never goes to Azkaban because he and Remus are out searching where Hagrid _thought _he was when he dropped Harry. Harry is found by Diana and after much debate, Hippolytta finally agrees that she can keep him, but that they must ALL raise him so that he will truly be one of the Amazons and not a man from Man's World. The Gods declare him their future champion and he is trained as such, revealed as "Wonder Man" to the outside world when he finally leaves._

_Challenge 15_:

HPFT Omake

"_The Train_"

Harry and Hedwig gated directly onto the Platform. They'd been staying at the Hilton in London up until today, September 1st. At five minutes till, Harry gated them from the lobby of said hotel to this magically hidden train platform. Hedwig hoped that the Obliviators wouldn't be too rough on that Hotel Manager they had just disappeared in front of.

The Platform was packed, with students, parents, other assorted family members and who knows what else. Hedwig immediately activated her _Aero_ magic, pure white wings sprouting from her back, allowing her to float at eye-level. Since her hatching some weeks ago, Harry had spent no expense on everything his 'neko-familiar' needed or wanted. Including, but not limited to, a large assortment of tailor-made dresses and other clothing items. Happy had the unfortunate influence of both Natsu and Gray, one who wore the same clothing day after day and the other had trouble keeping any clothes on.

Hedwig, therefore, partly because she was a girl and partly just because, changed her clothing items daily, only keeping the transfigured bandolier across her back as the stable accessory. It was used to hold her wand that she'd gotten from the wand vendor in Diagon Alley. Today, she was wearing a sea blue/green wrap-around dress with golden highlights on the hems. Harry, as a counterpoint, was wearing the same jacket he'd been wearing since he was eight years old, his goggles pushed up on his head, and blue jeans atop his newly bought sneakers.

"Let's go," he gestured and started making his way through the crowd. Eventually, they made it to the actual train and then walked until they had reached the final passenger car and made sure to secure the last compartment for themselves. It was the only part of the train that wasn't already filling up with eager young witches and wizards.

"Harry," Hedwig prompted, "How come you want to sit alone? Don't you want to make friends?"

"Not with this lot," he grunted, arms crossed and bunching up his still oversized jacket. "Besides, its more to protect them. I hate getting sick on people. Damn Dumbledore and his blackmail!"

Just before the train was about to depart, there was a knock at the door to their compartment. Frowning at the interruption, especially knowing what he was in for with no way out, Harry reluctantly got to his feet and opened the door.

"Hey, is this seat taken?" the red-haired boy at the door immediately asked, trying to shove his way in, "Everywhere else is full."

"No, this seat is not taken," Hedwig replied, stepping around from where she'd been hidden by Harry's body on the seat.

The boy stared for a long moment, blinked, and then screamed out, "Ahhh! A talking cat!" He then turned and ran back down the hallway, leaving his trunk behind.

"How rude!" Hedwig huffed, crossing her arms and looking expectantly up at Harry.

Unfortunately, at that precise moment, the train lurched into motion and within the first few moments, Harry turned blue in the face and his cheeks bulged from trying to hold back his sudden sickness. Thankfully, the red haired boy came back with a bushy haired girl and they both spent the rest of the trip nursing for the poor, unfortunate Dragon Slayer. Once they both got over the surprise of a talking cat and actually got to know her a bit that is.

"_The Sorting_"

Harry and Hedwig stood side-by-side amongst all the other First Years in front of the Head Table. The hat, which was just put on a stool in front of them, had just finished it's song and they were all staring expectantly at it, some with more trepidation than others. Ron and Hermione, the two friends that had helped nurse Harry on the train ride, in particular looked rather out of sorts.

"When I call your name, you will come up, sit on the stool and I will place the Sorting Hat on your head," Professor McGonagall said.

(AN: Skipping to the important parts, but assume that it was all don alphabetically)

"Granger, Hermione," the Professor called.

The bushy-haired girl tentatively stepped forward and briefly looked back at where Harry stood, Hedwig sitting comfortably on his shoulder. After that, she seemed to gather her wits and stepped resolutely forward and sat on the stool. The Sorting Hat was placed on her head for somewhere around five or six minutes by Harry's estimate. Finally, after what seemed like a rather intense and lively argument between the two of them, the Hat deflated a bit before proclaiming, "RAVENCLAW!"

The table filled with all the intellectuals and blue and bronze banners cheered and welcomed their newest member with open arms. The celebration was cut somewhat short when Professor McGonagall opened her mouth to announce the next student, when she actually paused, closing her mouth with a snap and re-reading the name several more times it would seem. Finally, she shot a curious look to Harry, before reading off the name.

"Hedwig."

Most of the room did a double-take at that. Two of them did not. One of those two, merely sprouted her wings and floated on over to the stool.

"Professor, I must protest!" Snape suddenly shouted, directing his shout to the Headmaster.

Overhead, the 'sky' of the ceiling displayed the storm that was brewing. A bolt of lightning with the following thunder arched across the enchanted ceiling. Most chose not to comment, until later, about how close that thunderbolt had come to frying their Potions Professor. The greasy-haired man, looking a little more fried than greasy at the moment, immediately turned around and said in a more normal tone, "I humbly withdraw my protest."

The Sorting Hat was placed on top of the cat's head, somehow tightening itself so it only went down over her eyes and no further, though it looked like it should have swallowed her whole. Barely more than a few moments later, the Sorting Hat proudly exclaimed, "GRYFFINDOR!"

(AN: Skip again)

"Potter, Harry!" Professor McGonagall called.

Harry casually strolled up to the stool and then just stood in front of it, looking at McGonagall expectantly. Letting out a sigh of exasperation, she put the Sorting Hat on his head and waited expectantly.

'Hm, well, well, well, aren't you a surprise. Given what everyone else thinks of you, I had expected Gryffindor or maybe even Slytherin with the way you've cunningly manipulated the situation to your advantage. But your courage, your cunning, and even that brilliant mind of yours, they are all because of that which makes them pale in comparison to it. Your loyalty to friends, guild, and family. There is no debate or discussion to be had about it, I'm afraid. It'll have to be...'

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat proclaimed, which was very quickly drowned out by the level of noise coming from the Hufflepuff table as they celebrated getting the Boy Who Lived, the Storm Dragon Slayer as part of their House.

(AN: Last skip)

"Weasley, Ron!" Professor McGonagall called the next-to-last name. Only one more to go, she thought privately to herself. Although whether she was talking about Zabini, or Ron's youngest sibling that would be arriving next week, she couldn't say.

Ron sat down on the stool and glanced briefly over at the table that had at least three redheads, and one talking cat already sat down at it. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as the cloth fell down over hes head. The Hat remained on him for upwards of a quarter hour. People were starting to complain, but it was worth the wait for some of those people, as the Hat finally pronounced where Ronald Bilius Weasley was going to spend the next seven years of his Hogwarts education.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"_Flying Lessons_"

"Seriously?" Harry stood there with his arms crossed, staring at the broom at his feet.

"Is there a problem, Mister Potter?" Madam Hooch asked crossly.

He pointed at the broom and repeated, with even more disdain and disbelief, "_Seriously_?"

"Harry!" Hermione hissed at him, tugging his sleeve, "You'll get into trouble!"

"Mister Potter, if you have a problem with my teaching you how to fly, you'll have to take it up with your Head of House. But if you want to learn how to fly at all, I suggest you get in line and follow instructions!" the slit-eyed teacher snapped at him.

He stared at her and then exchanged looks with Hermione, Hedwig, and Ron, one after the other. Hermione was looking scandalized, Hedwig at least shared his disdain, while Ron mostly looked confused, but also appeared to share his disinterest in following any sort of lesson plan here. He glanced over the other students gathered and exclaimed, more loudly, "SERIOUSLY?"

"We might as well show them, Harry," Hedwig remarked before taking wing and flying circles around the Instructor's head. Madam Hooch frowned, but clearly got the point.

"You are, of course, excused from this class, Miss Hedwig. Mister Potter, however..." her voice trailed off when she looked back over at him.

He was floating six feet off the ground.

"What...?" she started to ask.

Before anything else was said, Harry spread his arms and took off into the sky, circling the castle and each tower at least once before zooming back in on the flight class. Once his small demonstration was completed, he held himself in the air right in front of Madam Hooch, who could feel the wind blowing around him, keeping him aloft. He 'sat' cross-legged in front of her, arms crossed and stated more as a foregone fact than anything else, "Seriously."

"Uh... uhm... M-Mister P-Potter, you are excused from this class as-as well," she gulped.

"_First Encounter_"

Despite being able to eat fire alongside wind and water and earth, Harry was not in fact fire-proof. Or even all that fire resistant, without his magic that is. Which is why he'd had to drink the potion Hermione pointed out as the real one for continuing on. After stepping through the flames, he was fairly confident in who he would find on the other side.

That confidence, however, didn't keep him from being surprised when he was shown exactly how wrong he was. "You? But I thought Professor Snape...!"

"Ah, yes, Severus does seem more the type, doesn't he," the turbaned Defense Professor cackled, not a trace of a stutter anywhere. "After all, who would believe that p-p-poor P-Professor Qu-Quirrel was responsible, hm?"

While he'd been talking, he'd also been casting, and ropes had shot out, binding Harry in place. They also subdued his magic somehow, but he quickly figured that came from the fact that the ropes used his own magic to bind him in place and maintain themselves longer than the few moments they should have existed.

"Now, I just need to find it! I see myself holding the Stone, I see myself presenting it to my Master! But _where is it_?"

'_Use the boy!_' a voice hissed out from Quirrel's general direction.

"COME HERE, POTTER!" Quirrel spun around and extended his hand, only to see an empty pile of cut ropes. Just because they'd subdued his magic didn't mean that they had blocked it entirely.

"_Arashiryu no Hoko_!" Harry cried as a raging twister blasted Quirrel back into the mirror, destroyed said mirror, and blasted both back into the far wall and continued to pound them until the Defense Professor was severely injured with cuts, bruises, broken bones, and more than a few electrical burns.

"That was easy," Harry shrugged, figuring once again that wizards from this world just did not have any stamina whatsoever. "Now I've just got to..."

"_Did you really think it would be so easy... Potter?_" the same voice as before hissed out and suddenly Quirrel's body was up on its feet... standing backwards with the turban off, and a face with red eyes staring at him. Harry just grinned.

"Now that's more like it. Come on, I'm just getting charged up now!" Harry called and unknowingly began his first of many battles with the Dark Lord Voldemort.

"_Second Encounter_"

Harry stood in the Chamber of Secrets, following his nose to the one who had been kidnapped. When he got there, he just stared, not sure what to do. For the time being though, he decided to let Ginny finish... well _finish_ and then he'd come back to fight the Basilisk another time. That was the whole point anyway.

He was starting to regret taking her and his other friends back to Earthland with him for Christmas break. Erza was a bad influence on the younger redhead. They both refused to acknowledge how to hold back.

"_Dementors_"

"Are we slowing down?" Ron asked.

"Impossible, we can't be there yet!" Hermione protested.

"I can feel it though, we're stopping," Hedwig pointed out.

Suddenly the lights all over the train went out, leaving them all in darkness. Screams broke out up and down the train, only to be quickly broken into muffled tears and soft crying.

"What's going on?" Hermione shouted.

"_Quiet_!" a harsh voice whispered. There was sudden light in the compartment. The Professor that had been sleeping until now was awake, conjured flames alight in his hand. Harry, on the other hand, had charged a few lightning balls to provide further illumination.

Before anything else could be said or done, the door to their compartment opened and revealed a cloaked figure 'standing' there. It took a breath... and all the light went out of the world.

Harry was back on that hillside, crying for his father. A woman was screaming. He was in Hell fighting demons and seeing... things that should not be allowed by man or beast. He was flying around the world, crying in time with nature, begging for his father to come back to him, to not leave him alone. She begged for Harry to be spared, to kill her instead. He ignored the children that were lying there, begging for him to kill them so they could finally have peace. He heard the cries of other children, begging for their dragon parents to come back and to not leave them alone. He heard Voldemort cast the death curse and saw a blinding flash of green light. He destroyed the demons and had fun doing it.

Demons. There was a demon in front of him.

"RROOAAAOOWWWOORRR!" he roared and tackled the demon, tearing a hole in the side of the train as they forcefully exited it.

"_TALONS!_" he shouted in English, his hands covered in lightning-claws and began to tear into the demon. It screamed. It tried to drain him of his happiness, eat the bright part of his soul. But there was no happiness, no bright parts. There was only dragon, and this demon had awoken it!

"_Patronus_"

Harry raced down to the lake and saw the Dementors swarming. He didn't hesitate this time, pulling his wand, he gathered his magic and focused it like Professor Lupin, Remus, had taught him. He thought of the happiest memory he could, and then all the others at once, and then he clung to the underlying hope that inspired a feeling of such joy in him that he just had to let it out.

"_EXPECTO PATRONUM_!" he screamed as the magic took his joy and transformed it.

The clouds overhead lit up. But not with lightning. The Dementors paused, sensing the threat, knowing that what illuminated the night sky was not lightning, nor even an approaching storm. It was something so much _more_ than that. They could sense it.

Briefly, it dipped below the clouds, a flash of silver could be seen, but it rolled itself quickly back up into the clouds. A roar, not thunder, echoed throughout the land.

The Dementors all gathered together, knowing they were stronger when with others of their own kind. The cold in the air turned freezing. It didn't matter.

Finally, Harry's Patronus left it's cloud haven, head dropping down and facing the Dementors. For the first time in years, Harry saw a sight that would never leave him for all his days. A Storm Dragon flying down from the heavens, ready to lay waste to the puny things below it. The pure silver glowing dragon roared again and charged straight for the cloaked demons, rolling and flying along just like his father had always done.

The Dementors never knew what hit them.

"_Tri-Wizard Tournament: First Task_"

Harry stepped out of the tent and could barely contain his excitement. A dragon! They wanted _him_, _HIM_, to fight a _dragon_! And it wasn't even his birthday!

(AN: I'll save this for another time, maybe pair it with the Basilisk fight)

"_Tri-Wizard Tournament: Second Task_"

The judges stared in disbelief. Their fourth, and mostly unwanted, Champion had just done something they had all thought impossible up till now.

After having been informed of exactly 'what' was 'stolen' from them, the Champions were told they had one hour to get their respective hostage from the center of the lake. The first three Champions had immediately dove into the water and presumably started swimming under the waves for the lake bed and the Merpeople's underwater city.

Their fourth Champion, however, had glared with mounting anger and outright hatred, enough that the Durmstrang Headmaster had drawn his wand, though thankfully wasn't pointing it at anyone in particular. Professor Dumbledore tried to step forward to calm the boy down, but a sharp crack of thunder stopped him before he'd taken even half a step. Overhead, the clear day they had started with was turning dark and gloomy, fast!

"I blame you for this, you old bastard!" Harry had growled before taking off up into the air.

He had then screamed something which had echoed throughout the valley. Normally, when he screamed out his magic attacks, he spoke them in English, perhaps out of common courtesy. This time, he spoke it in his native language of Earthland.

"_Hisatsu: Makaze Arashiryu: Raijin no Mai_!" He then began to fly around while spinning. The dark storm clouds above flowed down towards him, drawn by the power and the motion he was giving off. Before too much longer, a full Category 4 tornado was formed. When it touched down on the water, however, it transitioned into a ship-killer waterspout!

At the center of the funnel cloud he'd just created, Harry stayed stationary for only a few moments, to ensure he had complete control over the magic and the environment he was manipulating here. Nodding to himself, he then dove straight down, below water level, which was made easier as the winds pushed back the water they hadn't already sucked up.

At the bottom of the funnel, the four hostages were waking up, having no longer been submerged, and the Merpeople's village was being torn apart by the destruction coming from Harry's waterspout. Thankfully though, no one had been hurt and the waterspout was, against it's nature, stationary and not moving from where it had first formed. Harry wasted no time in collecting Hedwig and helping her up from the muck and the mud of the lake bed.

"Harry? What did you do?" Hermione asked him, looking about in mounting horror.

He did not answer, his face a picture of anger at the moment. Holding Hedwig in his arms, he ordered the others, "Gather round, and hold on tight." Once they had a good hold on him, he gated them all back to the docks. The waterspout and tornado stopped almost immediately after that.

Back on the docks, Harry punched Dumbledore as hard as he could, without any magical aid, knocking the old man to the floor. "Don't you _ever_ harm my nakama, _ever_ again! Do you hear me!" he growled, his green eyes glowing a silver blue in the returning light as the storm quickly dissipated.

"_Third Encounter_"

Harry groaned and grumbled and could barely move, trying his hardest not to lose his dinner all over the grass of the graveyard he'd just been deposited on. Portkeys had to be the _worst_ transportation of all time!

"_Kill the spare!_"

Harry's eyes snapped open, all trace of weakness from transportation gone at the sound of that hated voice. Voldemort! He surged to his feet and launched himself towards the source of that hated voice.

"_Talons of the Storm Dragon_!" he cried as he swiped his hands forward, harsh winds and arcs of lightning shooting out from them. It was only after his attack missed that he realized he recognized who it was that was holding the source of the hated voice.

"WORMTAIL! You are dead if you don't drop that right now and scurry off! And don't think that I won't! Rat slaying isn't a lot different from being a Dragon Slayer, just a lot more satisfying is all!"

"Eeep!" Wormtail squeaked and did indeed drop the bundle that was Lord Voldemort's current form, before turning into a rat and scurrying off into the night... only to get eaten by Nagini on Voldemort's command. Sadly, for Tom Riddle, it was the last command he ever gave as Harry unveiled his final Forbidden Spell of his Dragon Slayer magic and wiped out... well pretty much the whole graveyard, Nagini and all the Horcruxes he'd gathered for the necessary rituals along with it.

Cedric didn't really understand the significance of what he'd just witnessed, but what he did know was that his younger Housemate had just saved his life and then vanquished what looked to be a dark creature of some sort... and took out an entire graveyard doing it. As such, he took the Portkey back alone and let Harry Gate back to Hogwarts on his own. Cedric was declared the Tri-Wizard Champion, despite his protests, and nobody ever knew the story of Lord Voldemort's final demise. The Dark Marks, however, having been getting darker for most of the past year, faded completely away and from then on, the Death Eaters were all in it for themselves and never considered teaming up or naming a new Dark Lord.

Harry finished his 'job' two years earlier than expected when it was revealed that NEWTs were only required by those seeking Ministry positions. For anything not having to do with the Ministry of Magic, you could be said to have graduated Hogwarts once you had five or more OWLs. To get the final reward from Dumbledore (a magical vow that he and all his descendants from any branch of his family were to never contact or manipulate Harry or any of his his descendants in any way whatsoever) he had to reveal, in private, the final demise of Lord Voldemort, but in the end, Harry left Earth after his Fifth Year and never returned.

Well... except for family reunions with his wife's parents and siblings that is.

_**AN**: PLEASE ANSWER SOME CHALLENGES FOR YOURSELF, IT MIGHT BE FUN!_


	71. Harry Potter and Gen13

Title: Harry Potter and the Gen13 Project

Author: Evil Guy

Rating: NC-17 (Due to Language, Violence, Adult Content, Nudity, and Sexual Situations)

Disclaimer: JK Rowling has Harry, and whoever else from the books show up in these plots. I don't own either and I'm not making any money from all this, so don't bother suing me. Gen13 and all associated characters and events were created by Jim Lee and J. Scott Campbell, and the original comics/events this story covers distributed by Image Comics, though are now owned by DC Comics.

Summary: HP/Gen13 Crossover. After defeating Voldemort and graduating Hogwarts, 18-year-old Harry suddenly finds himself with nothing to do. Then an IO agent comes knocking at his door with word about something his parents were involved in during the last war. Having nothing better to do, and still wanting to be an Auror, Harry goes along, hoping to gain new insights and maybe pick up a few skills.

Story:

Harry stood there in the middle of the parking lot for Kings Cross Station. He'd been standing there since that afternoon when the parking lot had been quite full. He had a knapsack strung over one shoulder, filled with his wand, his cloak, and six changes of clothes. He was wearing his seventh set at the moment. His wand... both wands, he kept on him at all times. Nobody on the train platform had made comment about the ring on his left hand. Hermione and Ron might have, if they had seen him wearing it.

As it was, Ron had been taken straight home by his mother and siblings from... from the school. Hermione had immediately left the Platform before the train had even fully stopped moving, and then immediately gotten on another train for Heathrow Airport. She had a flight to Australia to catch.

Harry did not blame them. He didn't blame the Order or the Ministry either. Everybody had loads of their own problems, and while the largest of them had been taken care of by him and his friends, it was the little details that always slipped everyone's mind until the last minute. Little details like the fact that Harry was legally an adult in the eyes of both Magical and Muggle society... and he had no where to sleep tonight.

Hermione had taken the tent with her, but that was all right. He was sure that he could have stayed at the Castle, helped with rebuilding, maybe even spent the summer there until he figured out what to do with his life. But in all honesty, he could not stand being there for a minute longer. Too many bad memories. And what good ones remained were tainted by the death that stained by the lives lost in the Final Battle.

Perhaps he could have even bummed a room off of the Weasley's, or gone home with Neville, or any number of his friends that would be more than willing and wouldn't think twice of it all. Harry, however, did not want pity. He wanted a chance to stand on his own two feet before he did something... else with his life.

Knapsack in hand, he started walking. When he got tired, he found a bench in the park, put up a Notice-Me-Not Charm, among a few others Hermione had taught him, transfigured the bench into a comfortable-enough cot, and lay down to sleep under the stars. He woke up with the first rays of sunlight, changed the bench back, took down his spells and resumed walking. When he got hungry, he walked into a restaurant and paid for a meal with what he had in his pocket from the train station. This was his pattern for the entire first week of the summer after his defeat of Lord Voldemort.

He found the soup kitchens on his third day, and the street vendors on the afternoon of his second. He figured out he was being followed by evening of his fifth day. He only figured out that they had started following him that day two days later when he cornered one of them and used his burgeoning Legilimency to determine what their intentions were.

A week after leaving the train station, Harry lead the men in suits and sunglasses on a merry chase all over London before finally taking a shower in their hotel room and was sitting in the shadows waiting when their boss walked back in after having 'lost' him several hours earlier.

"Who are you people?" Harry asked the man, who had pulled a gun the moment he spoke. Harry leaned forward, allowing the light from the window to illuminate his face, the man lowered his gun at the same moment and put on a false smile. "And why have you been following me?"

"Mister Potter," the man spoke like Gilderoy Lockhart, only more sincere in his insincerity, "My name is Special Agent Barker. I'm with the National Security Ministry. We've been looking to contact you as soon as we became aware of your whereabouts. It was vital that we locate you as soon as possible to inform you that you've been accepted into our GEN-13 Program. Now if you'll..."

Harry pulled out his wand and stunned the muggle government agent without a word being said. Thankfully he landed on the bed, more or less, so he wouldn't have to move him. Standing over the agent, Harry used his Legilimency to target the specific memories and verbally cast the Memory Charm, "_Obliviate_!" The man would not remember seeing Harry Potter sitting in his room. He would remember going to his room and then nothing beyond exhaustion he'd already been feeling. Harry was confident he would rationalize away any inconsistencies.

The very next day, a beautiful woman with dark violet hair approached him where he was sitting down to lunch. She took his sandwich right out of his hands and took a bite of it. Harry considered for a few moments, keeping well in mind that he was still very much the inexperienced amateur when it came to the Mental Arts, and found it as no surprise that he could get no read off of her with his limited Legilimency. He did feel a familiar presence in his mind though, similar to what he knew the Veela Allure felt like. He pushed the foreign presence from his mind easier than he'd ever had with Voldemort.

"Hm," she moaned around her mouthful of his sandwich, "Impressive," she added after a big swallow.

"Who are you people?" he demanded, no doubt in his mind that whoever this woman was, she was a part of the same group as the guys in suits and sunglasses.

"What did Very Special Agent Barker tell you?" she smiled, puckering her lips as she took a long sip from his drink. He grabbed his chips before she could snatch one.

"No such thing as the National Security Ministry, and even if there were, they have no business with me," he stated. "The truth, if you please, Miss...?"

"Callahan," she smirked, leaning forward slightly, "Nicole Callahan. You can call me... Bliss."

Harry stared into her eyes, and then very deliberately, in full knowledge that she _wanted_ him to look, his eyes roamed down to her cleavage barring top and the rather alluring sight of her perfect mounds. A sight of lace, more than halfway down into said cleavage was clearly visible and hinted at more that wasn't yet on display. He then moved his eyes very slowly back up to hers and grinned at her.

"Black. James Black," he offered his hand.

She smiled and then laughed out loud, drawing a lot of stares, most of them lingering from the males in the crowd. She finally shook his hand and said quietly, laughter still lilting her voice, "Oh Harry, do you really think we would have spent so much time following you around if we didn't already know everything about you?"

"Then please, by all means, enlighten me," Harry sat back in his chair, keeping both wands handy, though only one ready to draw.

"Harry James Potter, born July 31, 1980. Orphaned October 31, 1981. Legal Guardians, Petunia and Vernon Dursley, one cousin, Dudley Dursley. Attended Little Whinging Public School until time for Primary School, enrolled at Saint Brutus's Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Boys. Never attended. Shall I go on?"

_Muggles_, Harry frowned at the thought. He would have to be careful here.

"What do you want? And if you mention anything about some GEN-13 program, well, good luck finding me again," he warned her.

"How long have been on the streets now?" she asked instead, pouting cutely.

Harry frowned, pushing the tendril that had gotten through out of his mind with surprising ease. He said nothing.

"Long enough to realize that you have no viable skills, that much is obvious," she answered for him. "How would you like to change that?"

"Before you get into what, answer this; why me?" he interrupted.

She smiled again, leaning forward again. He didn't look this time.

"You're the son of James Potter, correct?" she rhetorically asked. "I'm sure you know quite a lot about him. But given your relationship with your Aunt, I think it's safe to say that you don't know quite as much about your mother. Or her family. Or the fact that you're the grandson of Jacob Evans, father of Lily Evans, your mother? Commander Jake Evans was a member of an elite group of soldiers known as Team 7. They were a part of our GEN-12 Program. I won't lie to you Harry. The reason we've been looking for you is because you are the grandson of Jake Evans. And we'd like to give you an opportunity to learn a bit about a side of your family no one ever even knew to tell you about."

"So," she licked her lips and none-too-subtly rubbed her heeled foot up and down his legs, "Are you interested... or not?"

Harry frowned and considered his options. Go back to the Wizarding World where these people would never be able to find him ever again, and where he would be hounded non-stop with fame seekers and well-wishers and still too painful memories, or go and learn the Muggle side of something Dumbledore had already turned him into... and maybe learn something more about his family.

"I'm listening," he finally said, uncrossing his arms and leaning forward slightly.

TBC...?


	72. GODS Part 5

Xander

I don't know how long it's been in control. I don't know how long I've been inside this cage in my own mind. And I have no idea how the hell my thoughts suddenly became the narrative. I guess when you're in your own mind, things get weird, even to yourself.

Damn, it's only been two weeks, _barely_, since I found out about me being a god and everything. One night of really freaky dreams…and some too-vivid dream walking to count off to what I ate before bed…and I accept a whole new lifestyle slash _life_ with barely batting an eyebrow. And the two who "introduced" me to this life I haven't even heard from since that night. Yeah, I get lessons in the Inbetween, but those "lessons" are just their advice and basic Q&A about the Inbetween really. While I've been sorely tempted on several occasions to knock the whole thing off saying it's delusions of my overworked imagination, well, I just can't.

Despite the fact that more than enough evidence exists in my body alone to prove what Kes and Ron told me, there is also that deep down in my center I knew it was all true. Even the stuff about Warlords. But they said not to worry about Warlords, I'm beneath their radar or something like that.

Too bad they couldn't have warned me about animal possession. I put two and two together real fast after the events at the Bronze. Other than the Hyena Pack behavior, and the whole animal dominance thing, there was fact number one as to why "I", and I use the term very loosely in this case, am the "Leader of the Pack". My powers. My Human powers that is. Still haven't figured out what my special skill is, or even if I have one yet.

Anyway, like last week, my body finished it's Awakening, which is what Kes called it, so all of my Human powers are like fully active right now. My only problem lies in learning how to use them, or even turn them on. I was just getting a hold of the telepathy thing right when this possession thing happened.

But the Hyena hasn't used my telepathy. Or any other of my powers. Even my near-superhuman-but mostly max-human strength, it was using to the bare minimum. My senses however, that is what it was interested in. It loved my full sensory input, which despite it's bragging I think might be _better_ than it's own in it's original body. But it also held back from using them to the full potential.

During the tail end of my Awakening, when all my senses and physical human powers went to Max output, I learned quite a lot about what they could do now. For starters, my sight. My eyes have about six or seven different, what I like to call 'spectrum modes'. Normal light is what everybody sees and uses for their key sense of sight. I've got about 20/20x1000 vision. Meaning that I see things in crystal clarity, but I can also see farther with not only greater accuracy, but with full color vision as well. Most people that see out of the corner of their eye, see in black and white (I've read), but, and I've tested this, I see it in full, 100% true color.

Then, there's my night vision, which unlike most 'night-vision devices', and a number of animals I might add, is _also_ in full color. In fact, in pitch-blackness, without even a source of light, I see about like most normal people do during the day. Then there was what I, after a bit of net research (Willow had given me the basics when we had first shared a computer class), found out was called 'Light-amplification'. Which, actually, was exactly what I had first thought of it as; thousands, (or in my case billions) of images captured in a single second overlaid on top of each other, leaving only the best and highest-qualities of each image to present one perfect image that allowed for a clarity of vision that even my daytime 20/20x1000 couldn't rival.

Then there were the last two 'basic' vision spectrums that I had; Low-frequency light, and High-frequency light. High-frequency gave me a headache less than a minute after I first discovered it. High-frequency light was everything _above_ normal light that humans could not normally see. In short, the Ultra-violet spectrum. Which, interestingly enough included both X-ray, and 'invisible' light. 'Invisible' light was not all it was cracked up to be. All it told me was, that I could interpret anyway, was where, what, and how intense radiation was near me. Oh, and whenever I look at the sun, my eyesight always overloaded. At least when I'm in the High-frequency mode. X-ray, thank you Creator, _was_ all it was cracked up to be and more. Unfortunately, I can't generate x-rays like Superman could on TV, movies and in the comics, so that meant that I couldn't see through a girl's clothing or into the locker room whenever I wanted. First, it had to be daytime, second, I have to be outside, and third, whatever I wanted to see through had to be _bathed_ in sunlight, not even a shadow on it, otherwise, wherever the shadow was, was a place I can't see through. And there were other High-frequency lights that I have fun with too, really cool colors.

Low-frequency light was, of course, just the opposite of High. Infrared, heat vision, (in the sense of seeing heat signatures), and a bit of other Low-frequency spectrums were just as interesting, and useful, as the High. In fact, with the heat vision, it was actually better since I realized that it would allow me to identify vampires faster and with 100% accuracy. Hopefully.

That's pretty much it as far as my eyes are concerned with my vision. That's where my other senses come in. That first night, where I'd gone blind, I had realized, (after experiencing it a couple more times) that I'd just over-loaded my eyes, them being in Light-Amp mode and looking directly at a light source. So, to immediately make up for it, all of my other senses, as Kes and Ron had told me, kicked in to cover for the temporary absence of my eyes.

The first that I had noticed was my hearing. It wasn't that I _actually_ ***saw*** sound waves, but that my hearing was so attuned to my sight at that moment that it was more like biological radar than "seeing sound waves". And, I learned, through much pain, trial and error, it was not just 'straight-forward' like my eyes normally work. It was full 360º full-sound radar 'vision'. It took me a lot longer than I'd like to admit to get used to it, in fact I was still having trouble with fully and accurately interpreting it by the time of the zoo field trip.

The second, was my sense of touch. One thing I'm grateful for, it could be tuned, with just a flip of a switch in my mind here, to either pain, pleasure, or the 'normal' both. As much as turning off all pain was tempting, I know better than to give into that kinda temptation. Pain taught lessons, and made you stronger. And, just to get used to it, I'd actually spent an hour with my sense of touch on nothing but pain. Let me tell you now that was both the most intense hour of my life, and quite possibly the longest. But, when it came to taking over for my other senses I found, say my hearing or sight, pain and pleasure went completely out the window. They were little more than input facts of intensity and location. I also found that where hearing gave me 360-vision, my skin gave me 1260º 'vision'. (By the way, that's 180x7, just so you know) If you think having sonar for sight in cool, just wait until every little air current that hits your body, or vibration through the ground, or passing through the air, or even the radiation of particle from the sun, space, and the very Earth are what you're using to 'see' and _that_ is intense. And believe it or not, it's actually easier to interpret than my radar is. Unfortunately it is also somewhat limited to whatever my skin can 'feel' around me, so long-distance vision is not an option. Not that I'd use it that way. No, this kind of 'vision' is meant for only two things. Sex, and fighting. Think about that. You'll get it.

And then there's when my touch can take over for my hearing, and _that_ is both confusing and migraine worthy. Remember, sound is vibration, and I end up 'hearing' a train on the other side of the town if I walk barefoot, and at the same time _EVERY_ single person in Sunnydale, what they're talking about, what they're driving, and what… Note to self: NEVER use touch to replace hearing.

Smell and taste, believe it or not, can also cover for vision, and are two of the only senses that rarely, if ever, would get overloaded. Besides, even I'm not too sure how sight could cover for smell.

And speaking of which, that is one of only two of my super senses that Hyena is interested in. Smell, and Light-Amp. At least it's all it's been interested in so far. Maybe cause those are the only two types of my senses that it's familiar with. Or comfortable with.

Oh gawd, if the Hyena actually _did_ start using my full powers, Buff and Wills would be in serious trouble. More than just 'I'm possessed, it's not really me, he's not really your bestest friend!' but 'Oh god, it can't be stopped, it killed them and worse!'

That little thing about mind control Ron mentioned is weighing heavily on my caged mind right now.

Oh yeah, about that, at first the Hyena was reading my every thought and taunting me by leaving me in the cage. But while I was 'unconscious' it got, and stayed, distracted enough for me to 'wake up' and learn how to keep it from reading my thoughts. A little something Ron had said when he first mentioned the telepathy to me, I could read others' "_unguarded_" thoughts. It made sense that the Hyena was the same way. So, I figured out a way, and started 'guarding' my thoughts.

It's not that hard really. You just don't think to yourself, just internalize your thoughts, emotions, feelings, and then come up with something to keep at the forefront of your mind while you're thinking. Some kind of image or song would do just fine. I've been banging out '_Jailhouse Rock_ and _I've got the Blues'_, (of varying themes) ever since I "came to", just before the Hyena got to the Bronze, when I "reminded him" that I was supposed to meet Buffy and Willow there.

_Un_fortunately, that damned cage is still in place, despite the Hyena being quiet for the past few hours. One thing though, that me and the animal that's possessed me have in common, which I'm glad of, is an intense dislike of vampires and demons.

So rather than turn in and go home to bed after the Bronze, we went "hunting". After dealing with at least a few dozen vamps in dreams, imagined or not, and combined with the full awakening of my powers and the Hyena's ruthless cunning, and the Pack playing as well in the background, any vamps we came across were easily taken out. To continue on the Unfortunately path, to the Hyena and Pack, hunting does not mean killing vampires to save the rest of the world. Hunting means looking for food.

I will never have a dog. I will never eat dog meat. Ever again. Please note the word 'again'.

Finally, just for the sake of keeping up appearances, and because he told them to, the Hyena and Pack went to our individual homes to sleep until morning. And as far as I know, as the sensory input has been lowered down to next to nuthin, the Hyena went to sleep about an hour ago.

You ever wondered if animals dream? Well apparently they don't, or at least animal spirits don't. The "mindscape" before me hasn't changed a bit, and whatever the hell it is that is the spirit link to the others of the Pack, while not as noisy as when they were "together", was noisy enough that it kept me from even trying to get some semblance of sleep.

Speaking of sleep, I don't even know if it's possible, with me being in a cage and all, to go to the Inbetween to ask for Kes and Ron's help, let alone dream at all since my "consciousness" is already on the dreamscape of my mind. Well, that's my decision slash debate here really. Do I sit up all night wondering what to do, or do I get some sleep on the bottom of my cage and hope that despite being trapped inside my own mind, that I can still dream and still call for help from the others of my kind.

Oh gawd how I hate these kinds of decisions!

The Hyena

'_The boy actually thinks he can keep his thoughts from me_?' the Hyena thought to itself as it curled up to rest, both in the physical world and in the mental one of Xander's mind. And despite the Hyena's boasts and even the truths about itself, Xander _could_ keep his thoughts, at least when he was blocking, from the invading animal spirit. Which of course is why it was so upset at the moment.

The host was not supposed to be stronger than the invading spirit. It defied and denied everything that the Hyena believed in and knew to be true. But Xander _was_ stronger than the Hyena spirit. Much stronger. If it hadn't been for the magic, then the spirit would have already been cast out, shortly after Xander tried to escape his "cage" the first time. If the positions were reversed, the Hyena would not have even been taken at all. The spirit had existed for almost thousands of years, ever since the first Masai had cast it into a person, and the first thing that it learned was that the strong survive and the weak are overtaken. Survival of the fittest.

But here…the _host_ was the fittest, the strongest…and he had been overtaken. It was a growing conflict with the Hyena, but it would never become enough of one where it would consider willingly giving up the body that made it leader of the Pack. Speaking of which, it could hear the others through the spirit bond. All of them were having nightmares, being too far away from and isolated from the rest of the Pack. Except it. It couldn't afford to even rest, even now that annoying Elvis music poured forth from the cage beneath the level of consciousness the Hyena stayed on, meaning that Xander was thinking, and didn't want the Hyena to know what he was thinking, and that meant that the cunning and inexperienced god was trying to come up with a plan to overthrow him.

That's it, the Hyena inspired upon. Experience; that was the deciding factor. The young god had absolutely no experience in dealing with spirits, possession, or magics beyond what he'd encountered in aiding the Slayer '_future mate'_ and seen in passing. Knowing that this strong animal was actually little more than a cub among elephants (AN: hyenas can't take down an elephant, can they?) eased some of the Hyena's tension and stress over why Xander had been taken. If planned right, even the most powerful animal in the world, with enough cunning, could be taken.

Once this was realized, the Hyena rested better and soon actually rested itself, having Xander's body curl up on the floor near the open window. And shortly after it was comfortable enough, it, and Xander's body, was fast asleep.

Xander's Cage

It happened so fast that Xander didn't even try and think through what happened, but one second the cage had been there, omni-present and sturdy as ever. The next, he had noticed the Hyena appear on the other side of the cage, and then layer-by-layer, his prison began to dissolve, until it was completely gone.

The moment he was free, Xander didn't waste a moment of it. He was no fool. Even if he could get to the Hyena without being put back in the cage, he would have to battle with it for his own mind, a battle that could potentially last a lot longer than the only other dream-battle he'd fought. Then there was the mentioning of magics the Hyena had mentioned. His only hope…was to be nowhere in his mind.

Xander ran for the exit point/dream door and stepped through it so fast, he didn't even bother to notice the elation entering the Inbetween always gave him. Once he was out, he was surprised to find himself surrounded by four dome-walls. The ever present mist didn't hide the fact that they were a sickly yellow amber that vaguely reminded Xander of the Hyena's eyes.

Xander only paused long enough to be surprised before he quickly moved on, _through_ the walls, careful to avoid the dream doors however.

Once he was past, Xander started running until he got to what could be called an "open area" and shouted as loud as he could with all his will to back it up. "RON! KES! HELP ME!"

Unknown to the young god, he had just tapped into one of his mental human powers, and in the Inbetween, were mental impressions were magnified and enhanced; his power displayed quickly became evident.

A loud wind picked up at Xander's shout, and then slowly spread outward in a cyclone of energy and wind. Xander's eyes flashed lightning into the wind, igniting the energy so a mini-firestorm was created before he finally noticed what happened and almost panicked, immediately losing what little concentration he'd had that created it, and it just as quickly dispersed into nothing.

A half-second after the firestorm was fully gone, Ron, Kes, and another of their kind appeared at the ends of paths.

"Xander? What's wrong? You've never put so much energy into summoning us before," Kes asked concerned, very concerned for her was anybody else's out and out panic.

"I've been possessed," Xander stated in a desperate tone. The firestorm he'd created completely gone from his mind.

"Excuse me?" the new guy said. Xander took but a second to look at him. He was actually about Xander's height, a couple inches taller, what Xander would be in a couple years anyway, with a mix of dark brown and light brown hair styled the same as Ron's, he had a similar muscular build as Ron, but the lack of height made it appear more compact and folded steel compared to mountains of rock, and he had a white complexion. His clothes included the same black leather jacket and armor and a weapon strapped to his back that Kes and Ron had. Instead of a sword though, he had a high-powered pump shotgun, which impressed Xander more than Ron's size had.

Beneath the jacket and armor though, he wore a fine white silk shirt, and pressed black dress pants. His shoes at least were practical enough, ordinary black work boots. The man looked 21 as the other two did, but his brown/black eyes held an age with them that one is cursed with when experience is had. He also looked like he was a man of authority, and accustomed to that authority. Xander immediately and strongly disliked him.

"I've been possessed smart guy!" Xander snapped. "I don't know exactly what happened, I think maybe the Hyena went to sleep and that allowed my own consciousness to dream. And thereby access the Inbetween. I don't have any idea how long I have, but I do know that if I don't get help, this _animal_ is going to destroy my life, and I don't mean in the make me lose all my friends kinda way, but more like going to kill every one of my friends and land me either in jail for manslaughter or just plain _dead_ destroy my life. Please guys, you've got to help me!"

"All right, first Xander…" Kes tried to speak.

"DO NOT TELL ME TO CALM DOWN KES!" Xander's eyes flashed again and another mini-cyclone started and instantly died directly behind the young god.

She was silent for a moment, just staring, and then slowly, and carefully she said, "Then tell us everything that happened. Every detail that you can recall, no matter how faint."

"OK, OK," Xander calmed down on his own, organizing his thoughts. Then he looked back up, with a much calmer tone of voice he apologized. "I'm sorry Kes, you didn't deserve that. Now who's the new guy, not that I'm complaining, because I need all the help I can get."

"I'm suddenly regretting coming," the new guy said sighing deeply. He extended his hand, "My name is Diz. Short for Drow Isaacs Siegfried the fifth. I'm one of Ron's…older friends." He added with a chuckle.

Xander returned the chuckle and took the man's hand. "Xander Harris. Only had my Awakening about three weeks ago. When was yours, if I may ask?"

Diz chuckled some more. "I'm over 4,000 years old pup. I'm one of the leaders that settles disputes between our kind. Except for the _other_ kind that is. But I've never heard of one of us getting possessed either."

"Has anyone of us ever lived on the Hellmouth before?" Xander asked sarcastically. "I'm thinking…not. And Ron and Kes never mentioned anything about what to avoid or even how to prevent a possession. Not that I'm blaming them. I'm only asking their help right now."

"Like I said, it's never happened before," Diz answered straightforward. "Nobody ever could have considered the possibility. Besides, your mental shields _should_ have put a stop to any attempts at possession before they even started."

Xander stared at the older god for a good minute before blurting with the epitome of confusion on his face, "My _what_?"

Diz stared back, the same confusion on his own face before he turned to Ron and said disbelievingly, "Oh you have got to be kidding me! Mental shielding was the _first_ thing you should have taught him."

"It didn't seem that important. He's only reported minor mental abilities before," Kes answered for the giant.

"It has only _been_ minor stuff!" Xander exclaimed. "I have to concentrate to even hear thoughts, and yeah I got the empathy thing down, but Kes said that was mostly just high-speed body language analysis. I haven't even moved a pencil yet! Now what's mental shielding?"

"It protects you from the stray thoughts you pick up from…mortals," Diz answered. "It also protects your mind from hostile intentions, whether that be from a Warlord or a Champion with psychic abilities. It also ensures privacy from the rest of _us_."

Xander stared at the other god for a few moments, completely silent before turning a reproachful glare on Ron and Kes. "And you just casually forgot that I might NEED THIS!" Xander shouted.

"Don't worry Xan," Ron spoke up, a look of resolve on his face, "we'll give you all the help you need. Most likely when the spirit gets bored it'll leave on its own…"

"Are you insane! I live on the Hellmouth and you act like it's two miles outside of Jersey! My life, even without this god thing, is NOT normal! Whatever the heck happened to you when you were born and going through all of this DOES NOT APPLY TO ME! I've been magically possessed by an animal spirit, specifically a Hyena, and so have four other students and guess what, I'm pack leader because the host, ME, is a freaking GOD!" Xander ranted.

"The Masai…" Diz trailed off.

"What?" Xander asked. He had lost his anger and frustration in his ranting on Ron's shortsightedness, but that still didn't make Diz any better in his eyes.

"The Masai. They were a group of warriors a few thousand years ago. Some of them still exist today in Africa. Think Spartans of Greece, mixed with headhunters, and the darkest magic-using shamans in the world for a few centuries at least." Diz paused to make sure Xander had understood it all. To Xander's own surprise, he had.

"They used to worship animals, thinking that humans with emotions and moral were flawed and the animal form was perfect. Especially predators. Sometimes…the shamans would grant their warriors a portion of the spirit of an animal, giving them powers beyond human, as well as making them the Masai's version of holy warriors. Xander, we need you to tell us everything that happened just before you were possessed. We may be able to find out how to reverse this. If you're right in that this Hyena has imprisoned you with magic, then it'll be far more difficult to forcibly release you. The easiest and safest way would be to reverse the possession. Which is actually possible, if we know what ritual to perform."

"All right, here's what I know…" and Xander told them everything that had happened, from the moment the field trip started to the last thing he remembered before waking up, trapped in his own mind. The other gods frequently interrupted him to ask him questions for more details, or things he'd left out.

They talked for the rest of the night.

Sunnydale High

_Morning_

'_You are a complete idiot! Even _I _get this stuff, and _I'm _the one struggling through math!'_ Xander taunted the Hyena as their shared vision was looking down at the open Geometry book that Willow was holding open before them.

'_Shut UP!'_ the Hyena roared at the captive. His patience was nearly at its end, and he was beginning to see the source of all his frustration and confusion. At least the rest of the Pack wasn't having to deal with this. They were laughing at him though, but he didn't let it bother him too much. The host's inane chatter and taunting however was an entirely different matter.

"I'm not getting this!" the Hyena said aloud to Willow, who was trying desperately to teach "Xander" what he needed to know to pass Algebra.

"It's simple, really," Willow stressed and then proceeded to explain. Xander, behind his cage, was following her with each step. The Hyena might not be getting it or needing it, but he did. "The bi-sector of a vertex is the line that divides the angle at that vertex into two equal parts."

The Hyena almost growled in its rage and frustration, but settled with Xander's motion of a deep sigh and its own frustrated movements. "It's like a big blur, all these numbers and angles," the Hyena excused.

'_It's called _language_,'_ Xander taunted, '_Specifically the English language as well as numerals used by all English speaking countries. If you want to pretend to be me any longer, you're going to have to learn it.'_

The Hyena growled.

"It's the same stuff from last week. You had it down then," Willow tried to encourage her friend.

"Why do I need to learn this?" the Hyena snapped angrily. Internally he noted that Xander stopped teasing him and started to growl himself.

'_Ah, a weakness…'_ the Hyena realized, with sudden inspiration, a way to get rid of it's headache.

"Cause otherwise you'll flunk math," Willow answered.

"Explain the part where that's bad?" Xander himself would have asked that question and cursed the Hyena for knowing him so well.

"You remember," Willow began the old lecture that she always used to get Xander motivated, "You fail math, you flunk out of school, you end up being the guy down at the pizza place who sweeps the floor and says "Hey kids, where're the cool parties this weekend?" We've been through this."

'_So you don't like it when I snap at her,'_ the Hyena taunted back at Xander. '_What if I did worse? She is attracted to you. Maybe I should give her a turn at being my mate before I move onto the Slayer. She might not last very long, so I wouldn't have to interrupt my plans at getting the Slayer.'_

Xander really did growl and launched himself at the cage, getting himself shocked backwards for his effort. He got up to the Hyena's laughter barely an instant later. '_Touch her and I will hunt you down like the dog you are, along with the rest of your pack, and I will make you BEG for death!'_ Xander shouted.

'_I see why you pitiful humans call this weakness your greatest strength, if just an idle threat brings this reaction from you.'_

Willow noticed that Xander wasn't really listening to her, and was rubbing his temples.

Xander slammed the cage again, this time managing to stay on his feet.

'_Tell you what'_ the Hyena said as he answered Willow's question in the real world, '_If you stop that banging, and the taunting…I won't rape her and then toss her to the rest of the Pack. And if you think you can threaten me without consequences…try me.'_

Xander glared at where the Hyena was above him. But he didn't even hesitate. "Fine. No more needling you. But don't expect me to help you out either!"

In the real world, the Hyena threw away the math book, while looking and feeling a lot better. Unknown to Xander, the pain the Hyena had been feeling wasn't one born of frustration or confusion, but was the lingering effects of Xander hitting the cage. It wasn't about to let him know that, but in his body language, the relief was more than clear as Xander stopped his abuse of the possessor.

Sunnydale High

_Afternoon (Specifically after Gym Class)_

'_I think I liked you better when you were teasing me'_ the Hyena admitted as he came down off the adrenaline high the game had provided for the Pack.

'_You cheated'_ was all Xander said from behind his cage.

'_Of course we did. We're a Pack. We survive. That's what we do and we do it together.'_

'_THAT'S NOT WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!'_ Xander shouted and almost rushed the cage again. '_You used my strength! You even dodged a double strike at _SUPER SPEED!'

'_Did not!'_ the Hyena immediately replied.

'_Did too! How else the hell do you explain that the entire room, including the rest of your Pack, was moving in slow motion, while you, aka *_**I***_, was moving around the balls and the people like they were a bunch of mannequins!'_ Xander raged.

'_That does it!'_ the Hyena growled and Xander frowned when he saw the Hyena begin communicating with the rest of the Pack, both psychically and in the real world. That was when Xander noticed Willow through the very limited sensory input he was getting from his body.

'_No,'_ he said weakly. '_NO! Leave her alone! You promised!'_

'_You annoyed me,'_ the Hyena growled back matter-of-factly. '_But do not worry yourself…too much. There are other, more interesting ways to bring down the weak than just killing or submitting them. Observe.'_

Xander started to pace behind his cage as Willow came up to him/them and asking if anything was wrong. "Xander," she called as the Pack was leaving the locker rooms, "what's wrong with you?"

The Hyena slowly drew the worried redhead away from the rest of the Pack, just barely out of hearing range. Then in a softer, gentler voice than either inhabitant of Xander's body was feeling, he said, "I guess you've noticed that I've been different around you lately," he began.

"Yes," Willow answered as though he were just stating the most obvious thing in the world.

"I think um," he seemed to hesitate, but even Willow could tell it wasn't a nice kind of hesitation, "I think it's because my feelings for you have been changing." Only Xander, still behind his cage was the one to notice Buffy walk around the corner. Amazingly, even though he was only feeling things through his senses at less than half their normal intensity, _his_ senses were so acute that he was still able to receive even more information from the surrounding world than someone with all their senses.

"And well, we've been friends for such a long time," the Hyena continued, "that I feel like I need to tell you something. Xander remained entirely silent about Buffy's arrival, and was slowly soaking in every word the beast was saying to his best friend with his face and voice.

He knew the Hyena wanted Buffy as its mate. He also knew that this conversation would go a lot longer way of getting Buffy to realize something Hellmouthy was going on with him a lot sooner than any of his resisting and trying to get into her dreams could.

"I've um," the Hyena said, playfully noting how the redhead's pheromones were playing both interesting combinations of arousal and fear, but only enough to annoy it, "I've decided to drop Geometry. So I won't be needing your math help anymore, which means, I won't have to look at your pasty face again." With that, he cracked up into laughter, like it was the funniest joke in the world.

In the background, even as Xander himself growled, the Pack, both through the link and in reality, were laughing. Xander barely managed to restrain himself any further as Buffy suddenly came up and got between the retreating Willow and the Pack.

"You gonna to say something to me?" the Slayer asked with a deadly serious look on her face, her hands on her hips in an even more serious pose.

'_Yeah, I'm going to love breaking you, my future mate. Let's do lunch,' _The Hyena said through the link, though Xander could hear it as well. Out loud, the Pack just kept laughing. And left.

Later that night

"I think I'm going to be sick," Xander said, sounding very much so, as he leaned against a dream wall in the Inbetween.

"Xander? What happened?" Kes asked, kneeling down beside him. He was glad she was here. Unfortunately, so was the new guy, Diz.

Xander sighed. "A lot. By the way, if I ever actually meet any of these Masai, American or not, human or not, _demon_ or not, and even god or not, I am killing them in the most painful way I can physically accomplish. Or, I may just let the Hyena do it, since it seems to be so good at that."

"What are you talking about? And why are you not trying to enter the Slayer's dream like we talked about you doing last night?" Diz asked.

"Because I, and she, are not asleep. I was knocked out, by said Slayer, when my body, controlled by super-hormone driven Hyena boy tried to attack her. Thank the Creator that Slayers are Champions and she was actually stronger than me." Xander explained mournfully.

"You… It tried to rape Buffy," Kes said with all the shock that could be expressed in five words. Xander wordlessly nodded.

"That's not the worst of it I take it," Diz observed, allowing his tone to drop a note or two of superiority.

Xander shrugged. "I ate a pig. Raw. And while it was still alive too. Oh, and the others of the Pack, the mortal ones…they ate my High School Principal. Nice guy. Even you'd like him Diz. Unfortunately, everything except a couple of his bones, like his rib care and spine, is being digested in what was once four high school students." Xander said this all in such a monotone that everyone, even Diz, who had just met him, knew how deeply troubled he was.

"You're not to be blamed Xander," Kes tried to assure her friend. "We should have taught you how to shield you mind. We are as much to blame as you are, for not preparing you enough. But I promise you, we will help all that we can. Won't we?" she turned and glared at the other two gods.

Ron and Diz started shuffling under the blue-haired god's glare, until finally Diz gathered his wit and came to a decision. "Kes is right, on all counts Xan," he said compassionately.

"And we will help you. We can attack the Hyena and the spell holding it in your body and mind defenses, and maybe even that of the entire Pack. It would send them into a confusion, letting them run on basic instincts only. It would make them only animals, unable to use human comprehension, or even to access their hosts' memories."

Xander looked up at him. Then he closed his eyes and breathed a deep sigh. "They're dragging me, my body, into the book cage right now. If we do attack, and it would do as you say, I would rather wait for a proper moment, the right moment. Maybe just when the others are planning to get the Hyena out of me. Any time before then would just endanger my friends," Xander said, his eyes closed the entire time.

He opened his eyes and looked at his three fellow gods. "But thank you for offering."

Diz suddenly looked confused, and Ron, strangely, seemed suddenly proud. "What'd I do now?" Xander asked, recognizing the combination. Kes answered.

"It's just…an unusual talent for somebody to be able to determine sensory data while in the Inbetween Xander. In fact, most develop it as a skill, much later on, only after a hundred or so years, to be able to sense what their body is feeling while they sleep."

Xander just shrugged in reply. "Yeah well, in case you forgot, I'm trapped in a cage in my own mind. I get less than half of my full "sensory data" as you put it, through that cage. And after a day of classes, where believe it or not the Hyena and I were in agreement was a waste of time, I found out that by concentrating I can get the whole picture from my body. Sight usually isn't one of them, but touch and hearing are always on apparently. I guess I just developed the skill early, because of necessity. It can't be that hard to learn."

"It isn't," the two men said immediately. Diz continued, "It was just surprising that you had already mastered it. Since your Awakening ended just over a week ago."

"Barely that, Dizzy," Xander replied, getting to his feet. Kes stood up with him. "But as I keep reminding you, I live on the Hellmouth. Your survival skills that took you centuries to learn…I'm going to _need_ within the next year, I guarantee you."

"When do you want us to come and help you Xander?" Kes asked.

Xander turned back and regarded her and the other two that stood beside her. "Is there any way that I could get a message to you all here in the Inbetween while I'm stuck in that cage? I mean, Ron said a couple weeks ago that if I cry out their names here in the Inbetween, you'll come running, even hearing me when you're awake. Is there a way to do the opposite?"

Diz paused, his face scrunching up in thought. Ron also grimaced, but given his size and frame, one would not assume he does much "thinking", so he just looked angry. However, Xander had learned, the hard way, how to see beneath appearances.

After a couple of tense, and silent, minutes, Diz finally answered his question. "There…might be a way. But it would be dangerous. And it would also require us to remain in the Inbetween until we were no longer needed. I can only speak for myself, and since I've got nothing going on right now, I can stay as long as you need me Xan."

"Look, thanks, but if it's dangerous I don't want you guys putting yourselves in danger just for me," Xander started to object.

"No, we'll do it," Kes said firmly. Ron immediately nodded his head.

"It's not _that_ dangerous Xan, if what I'm thinking is what Diz has in mind," Ron explained. "Basically we just enter Xander's dream world…and remain there even after he wakes up. We'll still be in the Inbetween where your dream world used to be, not inside your mind any longer, but we would still be able to sense what would be going on in your mind."

"Xander you are our friend, and just as importantly, one of us," Kes said, "What makes us different, better than warlords and the rest of the beings on this planet is that we don't abandon one another, and we always do the right thing."

"Or at least try to," Xander amended, understanding what she meant. He looked around at his fellow gods, and he couldn't stop the smile that came to his face. "All right. Thank you. I'll show you where…my cage is."

The Pack was lost. Their Alpha was missing, their strength they borrowed from him and his presence gone. On his orders they had consumed the human Principal, but afterwards…they lost contact with him. He was lost to them.

Then, in the aftermath and confusion of being discovered in what they had done, apparently in the human world eating someone was a bad thing, they scattered and joined back together behind a nearby bush, less than a block from the school, where they rested after consuming their feast.

Soon, they all dream-thought to one another, soon they will seek out their Alpha, and hunt once again. Behind the magic, their human host minds were crying and puking.

Bullies are very much like a pack, but they never have the stomach for what an actual wild animal pack can do, or will do.

The Library

Willow was staring, both fascinated and disgusted, at the documentary on the hyena, as it showed a back of them tearing apart and into what had once been an antelope.

Slowly the Hyena came back into control of the body. Xander was just sitting silently, sulking, in his cage so it paid him no never mind. Xander's senses and memories told it exactly where he was and who was with him. In fact his hearing and smelling both seemed to be shouting that "best friend Willow" was nearby.

"Willow," it croaked as the first thing it said as it came to. It was now in a cage of its very own, '_Rather ironic, don't ya think?'_ Xander interrupted, and it was going to do everything it could to get out of it. Even if it meant pretending to be human for a little while longer.

"How are you feeling?" Willow asked, fear and concern coming off of her in waves.

"Like somebody hit me with a desk," the Hyena replied. '_I would have hit you with a truck,'_ Xander mumbled, causing the Hyena to growl slightly. "What am I doing here?" he asked instead.

"You're…resting?" Willow answered cautiously, slowly stepping forward towards the Library book cage.

"You guys got me locked up now, huh?" the Hyena stayed on the offensive. Willow, in Xander's memories, never stood up to constant pressure and always folded easily. '_You're underestimating her,'_ Xander thought at the Hyena, '_She's made of sterner stuff than you and your Pack, and I guarantee you that she's smarter than all of you together.'_

'_SHUT! UP!'_ Xander could tell he was beginning to get to the Hyena, making him angry.

"Because you're sick," Willow answered the Hyena's question. "Buffy said…"

"Oh yeah," the Hyena grumbled getting to his feet, "Buffy and the all-around solution, punch'em out and knock'em down. I'd love to see what she'd do to somebody that's really sick."

"That's not fair," Willow said, a wave of anger coming off of her, "Buffy saved both of our lives."

"Before she came around, our lives didn't need that much saving, did they?" the Hyena reasoned.

Willow was silent. "Weren't things a lot simpler when it was just you and me?" the Hyena tempted.

'_I hate you,'_ Xander said behind his cage. '_I would never, in any form, toy with Willow's feelings like this. And you can't keep up the act. You would either attack her or sniff her before she'd even think of opening the cage. You're as stuck as I am!'_

'_Oh really?'_ the Hyena taunted back as Willow stepped closer to the cage. Then, in the mental world, Xander saw the Hyena call the rest of the Pack through the spirit bond.

'_Oh fuck…'_ despair settled like Friday's Surprise Lunch from the cafeteria in his stomach. Then he began to panic, '_WILLOW! YOU'VE GOT TO GET OUT OF HERE! THEY'RE COMING!'_

'_She can't hear you, you're just a voice inside my head, remember?'_ the Hyena teased.

Xander slammed into the cage, actually reaching the bars without being knocked back unconscious. The Hyena snarled.

"Maybe…" Willow said in the real world.

"When we were alone together," the Hyena continued, despite the growing headache Xander was giving it, "Willow I know there's something wrong with me, I think it's getting worse, but I can't just stand around waiting for Buffy to decided it's time to punch me out again. Look…I want you to help me. I want you."

"I am helping you," Willow answered, her voice thick with emotion.

The Hyena let out a half-sigh half-laugh, "You're doing what you're told."

"Buffy's trying to help you too," Willow reasoned right back. "You know that. Or at least Xander does."

'_Didn't you say something about a zookeeper sorcerer?'_ Xander commented.

"Yeah, Buffy's so selfless, always thinking of us. Well if I'm so dangerous, how come she left you alone with me?" the Hyena said, letting its true colors, so to speak, show as it's nervousness mounted.

"I told her to," Willow answered.

"Why?" the Hyena snapped.

"Cause I know you better than she does, and I wanted to be here to see if you're still you."

'_WAY TO GO WILLOW!'_ Xander was shouting with joy and doing the Snoopy dance.

"You know who I am, look at me," the Hyena said.

Willow didn't move for a moment, and the Hyena was beginning to lose it's patience. "Look," he said, laying the "puppy dog eyes" on heavy. "Xander," Willow whispered as she took the last step to the cage. The Hyena tried to react at full speed, but Xander slammed into his cage several more times and started shouting at the moment he tried, ruining whatever concentration he needed to grab the redhead, allowing her to escape.

"And now I know," Willow said smugly, walking back to the desk.

"LET ME OUT!" the Hyena raged, rattling the cage.

'_You know, that's a good idea,' _Xander suddenly thought. The Hyena froze, both in body and inside.

'_I'll kill her,'_ it warned.

'_Like you'd protect her when your Pack got here? No way. LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!'_ Xander started shouting over and over again, slamming into his cage, trying to rattle it, but generally just banging against it and making a whole lot of noise. He kept this up even to the point where the rest of the Pack came into range. In fact, he only got louder and more distracting when they did.

'_Fine!'_ the Hyena tried to shout over Xander's noise. '_If I warn her, will you SHUT THE HELL UP!'_

Xander paused, leaving the mental plane suddenly too quiet. He crossed his arms and waited.

"Willow," the Hyena said impatiently, trying to warn her that the Pack was just outside.

"I'm not listening," the redhead answered stubbornly.

'_Well if she's not listening, I can hardly warn her, now can I?'_ the Hyena said back to Xander.

In reply, Xander just smirked and started making, if it was possible, twice as much racket as he had minutes ago. The Hyena wanted to rip open it's hosts skull just to drag him out.

"Willllllooooooooow," a slightly muffled voice broke the silence of the library.

"Xander! Shut up!" Willow snapped.

"Willllllooooooooow," came the same cry. That was when the mortal redhead tracked it to it's source, and saw the Pack member in the library window. Her eyes widened as adrenaline started to pump through her body. She stood up, and just as the rest of the Pack broke in through the windows, she ran out of the Library.

Despite Xander's distraction, the Hyena used his superior strength to bend the cage outward, and with the others help, ripped the cage door completely down. Silently and to himself, so it was more thought to himself than thought to the rest of his mind, Xander broadcast into the Inbetween, '_Now guys! Now!'_

The Inbetween

Xander's cry for help was heard loud and clear in the misty, unoccupied space the three gods stood in. It was as if he were right next to them when he said it. The other two looked at the newest immortal acquaintance of Xander, he merely nodded.

"Now," Ron commanded in a steady timbre.

The three of them disappeared from the Inbetween in a flash of such cataclysmic energy that Xander's firestorm from earlier looked like a pop cap in a toy gun in comparison. Three towering infernos of mental energy stood in the same spot the gods had once, and then, first the female form, quickly followed by the other two male forms, they began to dissipate into the mists directly around them, until the area of Xander's dreams glowed like irradiated swamp gas on a full moon night.

Sunnydale High

Willow ran as fast as she could out of the Library. She paused, panicking and trying to think clearly enough to find a place to hide. She ran to the left, where she saw an open classroom door and quickly ducked inside, closing it behind her.

Back in the Library, the Pack was celebrating and greeting, in the way of their animal forms, their once lost Alpha. He greeted them through the spirit bond, but he was also debating with Xander over something.

'_Do I just kill her, or do I let the Pack kill her…or do I have some fun of my own first?'_ he was laughing as he focused all of Xander's senses on the hunting of the god's best friend.

Xander lost it and started raging for all he was worth against the cage. It made no difference. It still shocked him, but he had built up enough of a resistance against the magic holding him that he was no longer knocked out when it hit him. It only stung.

Tracking Willow was only too easy for the Hyena with Xander's senses. He sent the others in the other directions, taking Tor with him as backup. He too easily followed Willow's fear scent to the door she had taken refuge behind.

The classroom Willow had found herself in was dark, but not dark enough she couldn't find her way through it. Once she knew the Pack was coming after her, she made sure the door closed as silently as possible and then rapidly made her way to the teacher's desk and fit herself down under it and forced herself to stay as still and quiet as possible.

'_She always was good at Hide & Seek,'_ Xander thought as he picked up on Willow's emotional and mental state. The Hyena was ignoring it, focusing on his hearing and sense of smell and nothing else. Well, night vision was automatic at this point for the young god's Awakened body.

At first, when the two possessed students entered the room, they saw nothing out of the ordinary, and the remaining scents of all the students and other people that had been in there all day confused where Willow was, if she was in here, or if she had just been in here earlier some time during a class. Until the Hyena enhanced the hearing as high as it could go.

Tor, missing her mate, and seeing no prey here, sniffed twice more and then left. The Hyena stayed still, and then waited. Xander screamed as loud as he could, and grabbed a couple of actually graspable bars of the cage and tried to rip them out. The energy of the spell coursed throughout his mental body, giving him sensations of pain equal to the few hours he'd had his body on Max Pain.

The Hyena ignored him.

Because he had found Willow. Her heartbeat had actually given her away, highlighting the desk she hid under and half the room with its sound waves.

Moving as silently as a predator in the grass, the Hyena walked up to the desk, just as Willow was peaking out from underneath it. When she turned and saw him there, she screamed in fright, causing the Hyena to grin and giggle some.

Slowly, he advanced on her, immediately driving her to the corner of the room, between the blackboard and the windows.

'_I think I'll just eat her,'_ the Hyena finally taunted, and with a feral growl from the human throat, he leaped at Willow, just as she ducked around the other side of the desk, toppling one of the chairs in her scramble for the door. The Hyena, too focused on its prey to be any focused on its surroundings, tripped over the chair, scrambling after her.

Willow made it to the door, and stopped with a screech as she saw Tor there, waiting for her. Lucky for the redhead, the blonde Hyena didn't see the blonde Slayer until after said Slayer slammed a Fire Extinguisher into her head.

Unfortunately the good feelings didn't last long as the Hyena in Xander came up and tried to tackle the both of them. One good thing about Champions, especially Slayers, Xander thought, is that they can move a whole lot faster than he could. She slammed the extinguisher in the Hyena's face, and threw him out of the classroom.

Giles came up behind Buffy, both of them stopping to comfort Willow, but before any could utter a single word, the rest of the Pack appeared at the end of the hallway.

"Run!" Giles screamed, shoving both girls into the classroom. Buffy quickly barricaded the door.

The Pack, all five of them, immediately started pounding on the door, trying to get in.

Xander's Cage

Xander was throwing a royal fit, and he was getting more and more pissed as things progressed…with no sign of the others anywhere. He had finally let go of the bars when the pain had become too much, and was majorly disappointed when he saw that he hadn't been able to do a micron of damage.

He was on the verge of despairing of any help when the Pack was "together again" and started to pound viciously on the wooden door, that amazingly wasn't budging against all of them. He was really worried about what would happen when the Hyena tapped into his full strength. Not even Xander knew his limits in that area.

Suddenly, Xander felt a familiar elation fill him…and something more. A…another mind…no, _three_ other minds! Xander's eyes widened in excitement and joy as he felt the others suddenly fill his mental being.

However before he could figure out what to do, he saw the sparks of energy that had once filled the Inbetween begin to emanate from his skin, until there were three distinct "rivers" of it flowing from him. The Hyena didn't pay any attention to this, not even when one of the rivers began to flow in his direction.

Xander could swear almost by everything that he knew and believed to be true, that that particular "river" held a feminine mystique, as well as familiar eyes that winked at him as it passed. The other two energy paths went to and then through the Spirit bond, where Xander could almost swear he saw them flow through the Inbetween or something like it to the other two couples in the Pack. After that, he lost track of them as they stopped flowing from him.

Xander could guess what was happened to the others though, if it was anything to guess by what was happening to the Hyena in front of him. The sparks of energy, that he had to assume was really Kes, were surrounding the Hyena in the upper part of his mind, and as he watched, it slowly became…more…animal? Instead of patiently directing the others and thinking things through, it started to snarl, and drool, and…Xander blinked as he realized the plan…become more hyena and less 'spirit'.

Xander whooped, and started to work on his cage, confusing the Hyena further. Growling at the loss of prey, the Hyena, no longer so focused, growled and slowly backed off, planning to hunt for weaker prey. Xander stared with slight disappointment as "Kes" struggled to maintain the change she, and no doubt the others, had evoked in the Pack. He just hoped it enough, robbing them of actual intelligence, leaving them with only raw instincts. He also hoped the others could trick the Hyena and the Pack into de-possessing before the Pack did anything more that he would regret.

Sunnydale Zoo

The plan was about as brilliant as it was completely stupid. That was why Xander totally agreed with it, from Buffy's point of view anyway. Get the Hyena's to chase her, before they could attack anyone else, draw them to the zoo where the zookeeper who had wanted the power of the Hyena Pack that started this whole mess, could draw it out of the students. If the Hyena or the rest of the Pack had been "themselves" they would have realized this and would have stopped chasing Buffy the moment she leaped the outer gate of the zoo.

Lucky for the plan, they were too focused to even realize they weren't thinking anymore. What had Xander in an uproar was _what_ was driving the primitive spirits onward. Over and over, the Hyena kept…_imagining_ raping Buffy over and over.

If Kes had looked up from her keeping the Hyena primitive, she wouldn't have been able to tell the difference between the Hyena, and Xander.

Snarling, growling, and crying out in rage, Xander flung himself again and again and _again_ at his cage. This was not like the demonic energy cage inside Willow's dream world, this one, for one thing, was much better constructed, and it's energy supply seemed to stem directly to Xander's own energy. So every time that he hit the cage, it was the same as hitting him with twice the force.

He wouldn't give up though. If he had to make himself beyond exhausted to break the cage, if he had to rip it down until he himself was stripped to nothing but skeleton, if he had to do a Joshua and the Battle of Jericho thing…he'd do it. With his friends in danger, with Buffy in danger and running, all because of _him_, Xander could not give up. No. Matter. What.

"AAAHHHHHHHHH!" Xander's eyes began to flash, echoing with energy as his scream echoed back in his mind. His hits suddenly became three times as powerful and five times faster. Seeing Willow in danger had allowed Xander to tap into some as yet unknown power during their shared dream. Knowing that not only was Willow in danger, but Buffy and Giles as well, and all because of _him_, that was more than enough to tap into it again and draw greater strength from it.

He needed no rest, his muscles needed no break, and his anger only increased as the cage still continued to hold, without showing the slightest bit of a dent. For the two or three minutes that the Pack chased Buffy through the zoo, Xander didn't stop his assault on that which held him trapped within his own mind, his temper slowly growing shallower and shallower. Until finally, with a final cry and burst of mental strength that would have shattered his own mind, which only succeeded in shaking the cage in the single spot he hit it in, he stepped back, and almost wept at his lack of success.

Then, he noticed the input coming from his senses. They were on the path to the Hyena house! They must have figured out how to un-possess him! Then his eyes widened as he realized how much closer the Pack was to Buffy than they had been, and he heard the sounds of a struggle, and Willow's voice in the distance. She sounded scared.

Before much else could happen, they were suddenly in the Hyena cave, the lights, or maybe they were torches, made it so all of the others and not just Xander could see. But what he saw drove Xander over the edge.

The zookeeper, the one that had tried to take the Hyena's power, the one that had started this whole mess. He was garbed in blue and white, looking like some kind of witch doctor or something. And he was holding Willow. With a knife to her throat. Combined with the Pack just as quickly catching up, and tackling Buffy, the energy that Xander had barely even tapped in Willow's defense against the two vampires in her dream, engulfed him.

Xander suddenly felt like he was on fire, with all his senses on maximum pain along with it. Screaming in rage and with pain, the energy that had barely sparked from Xander's eyes before now, poured forth as the very flames that were covering him with the fire he felt. The fire spread outwards in an explosion that shuddered, and then blew out the cage.

Kes, Ron, and Diz, completely unaware of what was going on, were suddenly brought back to reality as the explosion of mental energy blasted them out of the minds of the possessed teenagers and back into the Inbetween. And not without a few singes either.

"My Creator," Kes huskily whispered, barely able to get to her knees and staring in wide-eyed shock at where they had been, "What was that?"

"It was…Xan," Ron weakly answered, able to get to his feet at the least, but unable to do much else.

"He…hadn't unlocked his mental energy with his Awakening?" Diz asked in total disbelief.

"Apparently…he just did," Ron answered.

Back in the zoo…the gods had been expelled just in time, as the moment of Xander's mental explosion, the zookeeper shouted in the Masai language, "YUBYASABA!"

Immediately, all of the Pack looked at the zookeeper, their eyes flashing the same green/gold of the hyenas' eyes. Inside, each of the children felt the same vacuuming sensation they had felt when first possessed, only in reverse now. The Masai zookeeper's eyes flashed the same gold. Grinning wickedly and growling, he dropped the knife and took Willow by the throat, planning on eating her by all accounts.

Xander, obviously, was the first to recover from the trans-possession, and still feeling the anger that had led to his mental explosion, he cried out when he saw the zookeeper holding Willow, especially how he held her. "Willow!"

Faster than any would have thought possible for him before, he got to his feet and rushed the Hyena Masai, and using his Enhanced human strength, he threw it back from Willow. Unfortunate for the Masai, the Hyena feeding area was directly behind him. He fell into the pit, and the original pack quickly moved in for the kill. Xander and Buffy both raced forward, but stopped just short of the fence, both had a sick look on their faces.

In the brief silence, an employee door, disguised as part of the wall, suddenly opened, and Giles stumbled out, looking like he'd been knocked out. Taking a couple glances around, he asked rather sheepishly, "Did I miss anything?"

"Not much G-man," Xander said soberly. Then he made a fast decision. "Uh…by the way…when did you come on field trips, and why is it night?"

The other four, faster than he had suspected, quickly caught on and also began looking around confusedly. Kyle stepped up to Xander, a half-angry, half-bully scowl on his face. "I don't care what games you play Harris, just stay out of my face. Next time, I'll beat your sorry ass." He turned around and made a gesture to the others, saying aloud, "Come on. Let's get out of here."

All four of them quickly left. Xander watched them go, remembering to keep the innocent confused look on his face all through the display. However, once they were past the point where the light of the cave no longer reached them, he heard Tor drop to her knees and start puking. Rhonda and Jacen didn't sound too far off.

"I'm going to be sick," he heard the other guy say to Kyle.

"Look…we've gotta get out of here, out of Sunnydale," Kyle sounded very scared now, not a bit of the confident bully he'd been just moments before. "If the cops catch us…oh gawd!" He quickly joined Tor in puking his guts out.

Xander was distracted from whatever else happened by the others coming up to him. He stuck to his decision. "Seriously guys, what's going on?" he asked, sounding convincing even to himself.

"You don't…remember?" Buffy asked slowly.

Xander looked around, confused. "Remember what? Last thing I remember is coming in here to help out Lance and stop the bullies. And…who was the guy that, uh…I don't wanna know, do I?"

"You saved my life Xander, thank you," Willow said in reply, kissing him on the cheek.

He blushed and ducked his head. "Aw shucks, tweren't nuthin' ma'am," he replied in a horrible cowboy impression. "But seriously…remember what?" he asked, sounding as if he really wanted to know, and despite himself, he was curious about what the others would convey over what he'd done over the past two days.

"Let's just get out of here…I don't…I don't really want to be here right now," Buffy said, her voice becoming sad, glancing over her shoulder at the caged hyenas.

Amazingly, Xander heard her thoughts as clear as he heard his own. She was regretting the zookeeper having to die, and especially the way he had died. And evil or not, he had been a human being. Her heart filled with regret and guilt.

Xander frowned and took the Slayer gently by the shoulders, draping his arms over hers and Willow's. No more words were said as they silently made their way out of the zoo.

The Library

Later that night, barely an hour after leaving the zoo, the four "Slayerettes" walked into the Library, and stopped when they saw the book cage. Despite knowing, in order to keep up the charade of amnesia during the whole event, Xander turned to look at the others and asked, "Uh, okay, do we know what did that and is it dead yet?"

"Uh…" Willow flushed a bright crimson shade and stuttered for a couple moments before finally she blurted out very quickly, "…" pause for breath, but before she could continue, Xander interrupted, looking outright afraid and confused.

"Whoa, whoa, and again I say whoa!" Xander shouted. "I was possessed? When? For how long? What day is this? Did I miss Xena: Warrior Princess?"

"Uh, it's Thursday Xan," Buffy answered, "Xena airs on Fridays, so no worries about that. Oh, and you've been possessed for the past two days. By a Hyena."

Xander blinked, his face entirely blank, and to the others it looked like he was trying to process the information, but actually he was just trying to read their minds. Surprisingly, succeeding.

"You really don't remember any of it?" Buffy asked, a note of disbelief in her voice.

Xander just blankly shook his head.

"All right, that's enough for tonight," Giles said tiredly. "Xander, not to mention you girls, have been through a great deal today. Why don't you all go home and get some sleep, we'll discuss this further, if anything really needs to be discussed, in the morning. Good night all."

Taking that as cue, and agreeing with the Watcher, all three teenagers walked back out of the Library, Xander more silent than usual. "Look, don't worry about it Xander, we know it wasn't you, and actually it's probably a good thing you don't remember it," Buffy tried to comfort her friend.

"Yeah," Xander gruffly replied. Buffy and Willow shared a concerned look.

"Xander, do you want to spend the night at my house, you know because of…" Willow offered.

"No thanks Wills," he interrupted. "I've got a lot of thinking to do, I wouldn't be as much fun. Maybe tomorrow night, Kay?"

"Okay," she answered meekly. "Good night Xander."

Xander turned and looked each girl in the eye, and then gave them a lopsided smirk, a familiar twinkle in his eyes, "Night girls."

Humor dancing in her eyes, Buffy replied, "Night boy." Drawing a confused look from the young god. He walked off into the night, doing as he said he would do, thinking.

Inbetween

"Thank you," was the first words Xander said on the Inbetween that night. The three gods just stood there, accepting his thanks. "You…you probably saved my friends tonight with what you did, so…thank you."

Ron shrugged. "Responsibility thing. No big deal. How are you holding up?"

Xander's grateful look darkened considerably. "I…I'm dealing…"

"You didn't kill anybody Xander, and it was not you who was hurting your friends," Kes tried to comfort.

"I lied to them," he said softly. "I told them I didn't remember a thing. I lied to them. I lied to Buffy."

"You lie to them every day you moron," Diz snapped at him. Xander looked up, a confused glare in his eyes. "Have you told them you're a god yet?" Xander looked down, shamed, and blushing.

"Good," Diz snapped again. "Because you aren't supposed to. And I think you see my point. They can't handle the truth, and they'd only hate you because of this particular truth."

"They could handle it…and Willow could forgive me…" Xander tried to defend his friends.

"They probably could handle it," Diz admitted. "Eventually. But not before they become afraid of you. And you still have no clue about how to handle your powers. Most of it, you have to learn on your own, trial and error. It's your body, nobody can tell you how to work it. But…if you'd like, I could give you some pointers."

Xander looked up at the new face. "Are you serious?" he asked.

Diz only stared right back at him. Ron and Kes both stood off to the side, Ron secretly smiling, while Kes was just glad her friend was all right. "I might as well show you the basics, since you live on the Hellmouth and all. But keep in mind, what I'll tell you is how _I_ do things. It might be very different for yourself." Diz finally answered him.

Xander stared wide-eyed. "Hell yeah! I'd definitely like that! What's first?"

Diz smirked. "How would you like to learn mental shielding?"

"Isn't that what was supposed to have protected me from the Hyena in the first place?" Xander asked Ron and Kes. Both, smiling, nodded. He turned back to Diz and nodded himself, waiting his first _real_ lesson in being a god.

Sunnydale High

"I heard the Vice Principal's taking over until they find a replacement," Willow informed the other Slayerettes as they walked across the very sunny quad of Sunnyhell High School.

"Eh, shouldn't be too hard to find a new Principal," Buffy remarked as they began to climb the stairs to the second level, "Unless they ask what happened to the last one," she added with a sour look on her face.

"Ok, but I had nothing to do with that, right?" Xander asked, sounding nervous.

"Right!" Buffy immediately confirmed.

"You only ate the pig," Willow added.

"I ate a pig!" Xander exclaimed. "Was he cooked and called bacon, or…" Xander didn't even have to pretend with the disgust on his face, the memories still all too clear in his mind.

"Oh my god!" he almost laughed, but it came out more as a stave to keep from crying out with further disgust. "I ate a pig! I mean the whole triconosis issue aside, YUCK!"

"Well it wasn't really you," Buffy said smiling at the formerly possessed god.

"Uh, well, I remember I was goin' on the field trip, and then I was going down to the hyena house, and the next thing, some guy's holding Willow and he's got a knife," Xander told them.

Willow looked Xander in the eye as they reached the top of the stairs, "You saved my life," she told him seriously.

"Hey!" he paused at the top of the stairs, "Nobody messes with my Willow." Then he fully embraced her, his empathic senses telling him that with that one act, Willow fully forgave and forgot everything the Hyena had done through him. He also made a silent promise to himself, that for the next few days, his redheaded bestest bud deserved some honest good guy Xander-lovin'. Of the friendship variety that is.

Buffy stepped back and looked at the embracing friends, a fond smile on her face and a warm feeling deep in her heart. Once the two separated, both smiling genuinely, she had to say something. "This is definitely the superior Xander, accept no substitutes!" she declared.

'_Oh good God my creator in Heaven!'_ Xander cried in his mind as he recalled what the Hyena had _tried_ to do to Buffy. '_Better take care of this now. Stick with ignorant amnesia. Please oh please Creator let them spare my feelings!'_

Xander looked at her shocked for a moment and touched his right hand to his lips, as though contemplating something for a moment, and then it went to his chest, over his heart in a nervous protective gesture. "I, uh, I didn't do anything else. I, ehh, around you guys, anything embarrassing?" he asked, a nervous, fearful expression on his face.

'_Oh my gawd! Should I tell him, or just hold it for later black mail?'_ Buffy thought as she shared a "girl" look with Willow.

'_I solemnly swear that Xander will never hear what that #$%&*% Hyena said to me or did to Buffy as long as I live,'_ Willow thought, but shot the same look back at Buffy. A silent message that was not in their thoughts however seemed to be transferred along with that look that Xander totally missed, and both girls turned, smiling like a pair of Cheshire Cats.

"Nah," Buffy finally said.

"Not at all," Willow said, silently admiring the muscles she had felt when Xander hugged her. Xander struggled to keep the blush off his cheeks.

"Come on, we're gonna be late," Buffy held out her hand for Willow, who took it and with a, "See you at Lunch," she left with Buffy.

"Cool!" Xander replied immediately, raising his hand in gesture of goodbye. "Hey! Going vegetarian," he said with a too-guilty tone in his voice to the girls. They smiled knowingly back at him and made their way to their class.

'_I am never touching meat again, and if I do, it will be very, very, _VERY _well-done!'_ Xander solemnly swore to himself as he turned in the opposite direction to go to his own class. Only to turn right into Giles, who seemed to be waiting for him almost.

"I've been, uh, reading up on my animal possession, and I cannot find anything anywhere about memory loss afterwards," he told Xander in that oh so British way of his.

Xander almost ripped the man apart with his bare hands, and knowing he could actually do that forestalled and allowed him to cover it up with not even a breath of a laugh and he answered back, "Did you tell them that?" he almost outright demanded, gesturing behind him in the direction his two bestest friends in the world had gone.

"You're secret dies with me," Giles leaned forward to say.

'_Thank you God!'_ Xander silently prayed as his respect for Giles went up notches marked in the hundreds.

"Shoot me, stuff me, mount me," Xander confirmed everything the Watcher suspected. Shaking his head in defeat, Xander walked on to class, feeling as low as hyena droppings. Giles just clapped him on the shoulder, and thought, '_Better you than me my boy, better you than me.'_ Which made Xander wonder for a moment, but he let it go.

Xander was aware of Giles eyes on him as he went, the Englishman's amusement bringing the guilt all the more to home. Later, he was just glad that he wasn't in as bad as Kyle and the others had been, or were at this very moment.

It was strange. The spirit bond that had made the Pack was completely gone, absolutely no trace of it in his mind or theirs, but he could still feel their emotions, and when he concentrated, hear their thoughts. What disturbed him was that they were all on their way to LA, running away. Well, the fact didn't disturb him, just that they were that far away and he could still hear them was, and here he was, not a whole building across from them, and he could barely pick up on Buffy and Willow's emotions anymore.

'_I'll ask Ron or Diz about it tonight…or maybe during Math._' He thought to himself as he walked into Geometry class. 'So _glad that I actually paid attention to Willow's tutoring session during the Hyena thing!'_

Which is of course when the Pop Quiz, that he had heard from the teacher's mind the moment he stepped into the classroom, was announced. Xander, rather than groan along with the rest of his classmates, just dealt with his guilt.

**END Chapter 2 of G.O.D.S.**


	73. Quantum Possibilities: Married

QUANTUM: Possibilities

Title: QUANTUM: Possibilities

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: Buffy and all related characters belong to and were created by Joss Whedon. The concept of multiple realities however is public knowledge and scientific theory at BEST. In fact, not even theory as no evidence YET exists to prove or disprove. Any other characters, while based on other fictions or real people, are not copied from said other fictions or the actual real people. They are fictional representations of my own imagination and I stand to make no profit of my own from this fic and if any, people who own or are represented in this fiction should be honored, not offended. If you are, I'll change it, just contact me with either critique or criticism at  .guy . Also, so many people have rewritten this opening scene for so many fanfics, I DON'T CARE IF ITS BEEN USED BEFORE, I WROTE/DESRCIBED IT THIS WAY, BUT JOSS WHEDON OR WHOEVER ACTUALLY WROTE THE SCENE!

Spoilers for "The Gift". And lots of others, I'm not naming them all. Seasons 1-6. And maybe a few books.

Also to note, this in itself is an alternate universe, as if it were the TV verse, then I'd be getting sued for copyright infringement. Timeline: Right after Buffy jumped into the portal the Key opened. Rather than fall through it and to her death however, Buffy fell into the portal as though it were an actual portal. But it still closed. Before this point, yes, identical to the TV verse.

Summary: Buffy, after sacrificing herself to save all, finds out about all the different possibilities her life could have had, if she had only made a few different choices, or if others had.

'_Italics'_ are thoughts.

"Quotes" are speech.

Less and Greater signs are telepathy.

[Brackets] are locations, aka universes.

[AU 02: "The Married Universe"]

Buffy stepped over to the sink and ran the water and splashed her face a couple times, trying to both figure out what happened, and dispel the lingering effects of whatever that had been. She frowned as she turned the water off, her face dripping as she stared at herself in the mirror. A thought had just struck her that the entire experience, at least the actual disorientation part, not the physical side effects, had felt more familiar than she cared to think on. She had felt very nearly the same sensations when she had jumped into the portal… only then she had been in a free fall. Disorientation when you're already disoriented from being mid-air isn't the same as when you're on the ground.

Shaking it off, Buffy grabbed the towel beside the sink and dried her face and hands. Sighing, now glad the experience, whatever the heck it had been, was over and turned to go and rejoin the others. She turned off the light as she left and made her way back to the back room… only to find it completely deserted, save for the training equipment Giles always kept back here.

Buffy frowned. '_I wasn't in there _that _long, was I?'_ she thought to herself. She also noticed that they had apparently cleaned up the mess the viewing spell had made. She pouted as she wondered where they had put the viewing mirror.

"Hey guys? What's going on? Where'd you all go?" Buffy called out as she walked towards the front of the shop.

When she got there, she had to stop for a moment. If she didn't know any better, she'd say that the entire layout of the shop had changed, save for the corner of bookshelves and the table where everyone in the shop was currently seated. She also noted that the store was closed, despite it still being daylight working hours and the store being open just half an hour before, just before the explosion/finishing of the viewing mirror.

After taking in the abrupt changes, to her viewpoint that is, she shifted her attention to the table with all the people at it and had to stop again. This time just to keep herself from screaming insanely and running away. Or from fainting. Probably both.

At the table, starting at the head, was Giles, as he always was, ever clad in tweed and looking stuffy and British. Just not in the same outfit he'd been in that morning. Next to him, on his left, and on the far side of the table from Buffy, was Dawn, her long hair looking slightly disheveled, but her eyes were bloodshot and it looked as if she had been crying a great deal recently. More than thirty minutes worth anyway.

Next to Dawn was Spike of all people, looking grim, but at the same time protective of Dawn, as she somehow knew he truly was. At the end of the table, opposite Giles, and standing, was Willow. And _this_ was where Buffy stared. The Willow standing there had very short styled hair, similar to the length and style Willow had had when they had first started college, and her dress was about as 180 as it got to what Buffy remembered Willow wearing just a few minutes before. She wore a slim, figure hugging dress with spaghetti-thin straps, the dress a patterned royal and navy blue color that highlighted her pale skin.

On Willow's left, now turning to look at her, as they all were at her entrance, was Xander. He was exactly identical to the Xander she had seen half an hour before, so she just skimmed past him, instead moving on to the last two people at the table.

On Giles' right was Tara, and this Tara looked more like the one she knew, dressing in form-concealing dresses and coats, but the shy, fearful look wasn't there. Neither was the confident one that she had seen in that face for the past two weeks.

And the last person…

"Angel?" she half whispered half cursed.

At that one word, everyone stood up from the table and stared at her like she was the Ghost of Christmas Past. Fearful, but in awe and thanksgiving at the same time.

"What are you doing here?" she bit out, her sharp tone cutting the air like a shot.

"Buffy," he said in that way of his. It used to make her weak in the knees, the way he said her name with so much love and feeling. Now it made her sneer.

"I asked you a question Angel, what the hell are you doing in my town?" she snapped again, her anger at her ex-love forcing her past the shock of what was happening to her and the changes in everything.

"Buffy," he said again, but this time the hurt shown in his eyes. He, and anybody else was stopped from saying anything else as Dawn almost literally flew over the table and was in the Slayer's arms instantly.

"BUFFY!" the young Summers cried in joy, tears started flowing down her face as she embraced the shorter yet older blonde.

Buffy was immediately forestalled in any further anger towards Angel as she embraced Dawn Summers right back, more confused over the girl's behavior than anything else at the moment. "Dawn?" Buffy tried to rouse her sister out of her teary embrace. "Dawnie? Are-are you all right? What's going on here? What happened?"

"Oh gawd Buffy, I'm so glad you're alive! I-I-I t-tried to do what you said, b-but it's been so hard and, and I, and I, and I…" Dawn hiccupped in her answered, but then dissolved back into her tears.

Now Buffy looked up to notice that everyone else was gathering around her, smiles and tears of happiness on their faces. Except for two. Spike stayed where he had stood, and Angel looked to be distancing himself, a look of fear coupled with heartbreak of the worst kind shown on his face.

Buffy began to suspect what was going on, but her mind just refused to even consider it. "Would somebody please tell me what the hell is going on here?!" she shouted.

"You-you're alive," Tara stuttered, disbelief in her entire posture. Silence met her statement, save for the sobs from Dawn.

Buffy blinked. Slowly, she drew herself back from Dawn and forced the girl away from her. That was when she saw it. Xander and Willow, standing side-by-side, hands holding, and a diamond ring on Willow's left hand. Her eyes shifted back to Tara, looking over the blonde intricately, studying her even.

Buffy closed her eyes and counted to ten, taking and holding a breath and then letting out a long, slow sigh at the end of her count.

"Buffy? What-what's the matter?" Dawn stuttered, sounding very much the little girl.

Buffy took another breath and opened her eyes. Then she looked at Xander and Willow with almost a mournful look on her face. She said, contrary to her expression, with much happiness, "Congratulations you two."

The too-obvious couple startled at her words, and a look of guilt passed over each of their faces before Xander said a bit too high-pitched, "I-I'm not sure what you mean Buffy. I mean, the congrats should go to you, for not being dead and all."

"Nice ring Wills," Buffy said, dropping the happy tone for a more monotone.

Immediately the redhead blushed to match her hair color and with her right hand, covered the diamond ring. "Oh, yeah, that," Xander said, typical of him, trying to hide his blush beneath a joke or two.

Taking another breath, Buffy slowly turned around, away from the group. She let out a shuddering sigh, and then inhaled again, this time a little less steady on the intake. Her hands covered her face almost all on their own as she whispered mostly to herself, "It's not fair. It's just not fair," she began to cry as what had happened became more than clear to her.

Xander and Willow engaged? Tara not even a witch, since she was wearing several key things that said she _definitely_ wasn't. And Angel, not only being here in Sunnydale, but making with the brooding, 'I'm still in love with Buffy' act. And then there was her "dizzy spell" not a few minutes ago. Which felt exactly the same, except for not being mid-air, to what she felt when she had gone through the portal that landed her in…

Another universe. She was in another universe. Not home, but also quite obviously not where she had first landed either. Had the viewing spell caused this? Something else? She didn't have the first clue, but she did know one thing, in this universe… she had not saved Dawn in time. She had not lived, or maybe Glory had killed her, but either way, the reactions of the others were more than obvious.

"It's just not fair," she said again, a little bit louder, enough for Angel to hear it anyway.

"What's not fair Buffy?" he asked, trying to sound comforting.

"What's wrong Buffy?" Dawn almost begged.

Taking long, slow breaths, focusing on not fainting or going into "shell shock" again, Buffy lowered her hands and turned to look back at the group. Tears were running down her cheeks as she stared at each in turn, finally resting on Dawn.

"I'm sorry," she hoarsely whispered. "It's just not fair," she said again, turning to face them more fully.

"Wh-what's n-not fair Buffy?" Tara stuttered.

Swallowing deeply, Buffy steeled herself and pushed down her emotions as hard and forcefully as she could. She took a breath, finding that she had to consciously do it, otherwise she feared she might forget to breath at all and her chest would seize with the emotions she was feeling.

"I'm not your Buffy," she started simply. "I'm from an alternate universe. Another dimension of sorts. Two weeks ago… I… we fought Glory. She… had Dawn and we had a plan to rescue her. The portal opened. I jumped to close it. Instead of falling to my death like I thought I would, like the ritual said would happen… I fell _through_ the portal… into another universe. I… in that universe the portal never opened… and I helped my double defeat Glory. For the past two weeks, I've been living with her and her sister… her Dawn. But… something happened just now, something… I can't explain it. Look where's Anya, maybe she can help me explain it and make sense out of what happened."

Everyone except Spike looked at her, confused, before it was finally Xander who blurted, "Uh Buff, who's Anya?"

Buffy gave the tall dark haired man an incredulous look, enough that Xander put himself more behind Willow than he already was. That was when the dots started to come together. The picture was still a bit hazy though.

"Anya, ex-demon, shopkeeper here, loves sex and money. Usually in that order. Would make Cordelia sound like a chaste nun? Ringing any bells here?" Buffy tried.

"Uh, Buffy, I-I'm the shopkeeper here, uh, I mean, I work for Mister Giles, who owns this store," Tara stuttered in answer to Buffy's questioning.

That threw the lost Slayer for a loop and left her blinking for a moment, giving her thoughts time to catch up. '_Now wait a second here… if there's no Anya, and Willow and Xander are the ones engaged here… who's with Tara?'_

Buffy stared confusedly at the blonde shopkeeper for several seconds before casting looks between Tara and Willow several times, opening her mouth to speak, and then closing it again when nothing came out. She finally came to a single conclusion.

"Okaaaaaaaay, Willow is not gay, check. No Anya, check. Tara has Anya's job and is not a witch, check. Just so I know and don't get too confused later on, is there anything else major that I should know about in advance that differs from my home?" Buffy said, sounding more like herself than the situation warranted.

Her comments, however, left some mighty big reaction wakes.

"I'm not gay!" Willow _loudly_ exclaimed. "What makes you think I'm gay Buffy, and-and how come your not dead anymore? I mean… we kinda… buried you and all."

Buffy sighed. "Was anybody listening just now?" she said with a bit more control, her frustration and anger helping her. "I'm not your Buffy. I'm from an alternate universe. Two actually. I-I don't know what the heck is going on, but I need you guys to believe me. I know it sounds very far fetched. But… I don't know who else I can turn to, and I don't even know how to begin…"

"It's all right Buffy, we'll help," Angel said, stepping back up beside the group. She had been about to break down again, but both Angel's appearance and his words allowed her to regain control.

"Don't worry Buffy, we'll figure things out, just like we always do," Dawn said. "I'm just so glad you're alive… after the tower I, we had no clue about how to go on or anything and I…"

"Oh Dawnie," Buffy couldn't help herself. Not her actual sister or not, every single one of her instincts was screaming at her to protect and comfort her sister. She stepped back into the group and hugged the young Summers.

Everyone was silent, letting the sisters reunite, but finally it was, as it had to be, Angel who broke it apart by asking, "So… if you are from another dimension… what happened to our Buffy?"

Buffy couldn't help but notice Dawn stiffen under her, and she couldn't blame the former key. Just as slowly as before, she stepped back from Dawn and pushed the young Summers away. "Why don't you tell me?" she asked, tears still in her voice.

"She… jumped. We buried her body in the woods, away from where the vampires usually are. We… we've kept it quiet. We were planning on using the Buffybot so Dawn could still live at home and everything." Willow answered. "That's actually what we were all doing here, discussing."

Buffy nodded, and rather than react as she normally would, the use of her robotic double in _any_ fashion beyond a pile in the scrap-yard, she thought it out and realized that it was a good plan, and if it worked then Dawn would get to stay at home rather than being put in a foster home or having one of her friends adopt her younger sister. Now that she thought of it, they were probably doing it anyway back at her home.

Nodding carefully, Buffy said, "Good plan. It would definitely help. At least keep things stable for you Dawnie."

"But first it would kinda require rebuilding the Buffybot," Angel put forward.

"Which we'd kinda need Warren to do, and since we don't want him, or anyone really, to know that you're… uh, she's dead…" Willow trailed off.

Buffy frowned, nodding. Then her frown deepened. "It wasn't damaged that badly after the fight with Glory, was it? And Will, didn't you keep parts from Ted, wouldn't they help you figure it out?"

Everyone exchanged guilty looks back and forth, and all of a sudden Spike was just gone. It wasn't until the front door clanged shut that anybody even realized. Buffy rolled her eyes. She had… well, not forgiven, but more over moved on that Spike had had the Buffybot made, and didn't let it bother her so long as he kept his promise that he never used or even _wanted_ to use it again.

"Well… I… kinda tore it apart…" Angel stuttered, scratching the back of his head.

That was when several things that had been bugging her began to come together for Buffy. The first, the guilty looks that kept being traded back and forth between her and Angel, the second the look on his face and the sound of his voice when Angel first saw her, and third… Angel had _two_ rings on his left hand; the Cladagh, and a simple gold wedding band. Her face fell and her entire upper body felt entirely numb the moment the realization struck her.

"Oh my god," she whispered and that was when Angel noticed what she had noticed. A little late and too ineffectively he tried to hide his hand behind his back, and doing his best to look innocent. He wasn't exactly succeeding, all things considered.

"We're _married_?!" Buffy screeched loud enough that all the guys, and Willow, winced and Dawn had to cover her ears in hopes to keep them from bleeding.

Buffy was in the middle of a nervous breakdown, so she didn't notice.

"I thought the last world was weird because I wasn't *wanting* to die, but I didn't even scratch the cake of this one, Angel and I broke up for a reason… I don't really remember what that reason was, but I think it was because Angel left for LA after Graduation, thinking it would give me a normal life, but HELLO! Slayer here, I don't **GET** a normal life because I drew the cosmic lottery and got the shaft end of being the Vampire Slayer and then there was Riley and he was OK… until he decided that because I didn't love him he could go out and cheat on me with every vampire whore south of Baker street and…"

"Buffy, what are you talking about?" Angel finally interrupted her tirade.

Buffy suddenly stopped and glared at the souled vampire. "For the SECOND time! I am NOT, I repeat NOT _your_ Buffy! I am from an alternate reality. Where after we blew up the Mayor, _you_… or actually _my_ Angel… left me to go to LA! Said it was for my own good, so I could have a normal life, but noooo! I'm the Slayer, I…"

"We got that part Buffy, but… if you aren't my… _our_ Buffy… then where is she? Our Buffy?" Dawn interrupted.

Buffy blinked. Her thought processes entirely halted by that simple question. "I… I don't know Dawn. All I know is that instead of just closing the portal and dying… I fell _through_ the portal, into another dimension. Not the hell dimension Glory was trying to get to, but another Sunnydale, where the portal hadn't, and didn't open."

"The portal opened here too," Willow spoke up, stepping forward some. "B-Buffy jumped. But… she fell through the portal in the way that… she landed on a pile of construction stuff the crazy people had left there. We buried her just over a week ago…"

Buffy closed her eyes in grief and struggled not to let out a burst of fresh tears. Despite everything, arguments and differences included, she enjoyed her time spent with her other self. That she wouldn't get the same opportunity here hurt, it hurt a great deal. "Then she's in heaven Dawn. I honestly believe that. Your sister… if she was anything like the last Buffy I met… if she's anything like me, she's too good to be in any place but heaven. I do not think for a second that God or any of the Powers That Be would let her spend any moment in anything but paradise."

"Death was my gift. It must have been her's too," Buffy continued. "The hardest thing to do in life… is to live in it. Death is a release, not a condemnation or something else. Wherever she is Dawn, I know that she's happy, and with Mom."

There was not a dry eye in the entire shop; even Giles was poking at his eyes, trying to hide by facing the bookshelves.

"But I miss her," Dawn wailed/cried.

"I know," Buffy said as she embraced the youngest Summers again. "And… it's ok to miss her. Just don't forget her, and keep your promise to her. I'm sure it's the same one I made my sister promise when I jumped. Just try each day to be happy, that's all anyone can ask of you."

"But I don't want to forget her!" Dawn cried out.

"Then don't. I-I got a lot of help in dealing with Mom's death, and my own death wish in the last dimension. You don't have to be sad to remember the people that have died Dawn. You can remember the good times, the fun times, the things you liked best about them. Mom might have always been nagging me and worrying me to death, but I remember that she did it with love and was always there for me whenever we needed to talk."

Dawn nodded into Buffy's shoulder. Then she felt the younger woman smile slightly. "And she really liked Star Trek too." Buffy couldn't help it, she giggled.

"As… heartwarming and good as all this is," Giles softly interrupted, "I would like it, if you don't mind that is, if you could answer some questions. Perhaps we can figure out how it is that you came to our dimension after spending…"

"Two weeks," Buffy supplied.

"Yes, after two weeks in the dimension where the portal deposited you. Xander, could you go and retrieve that spell box that you and Spike retrieved from that… demon."

"Doc," both Buffy and Dawn said at the same time. Buffy smiled and shrugged at the younger Summers. "You're double on the last world said it enough times that we finally just started calling the thing by his name. Glad that Xander and Spike got to kill him, I didn't really feel like throwing him off a tower for the second time." Dawn giggled.

Xander shortly came back with the box and placed it on the table. Giles pulled out the scrolls from inside and began to look over them. "So what are we looking for G-man?" Xander asked.

"I don't quite know yet, but I'm sure we'll know it when we find it. And don't call me G-man."

Everyone stared in disbelief at Giles, except for Buffy, who remembered several occasions where Giles had no clue about anything and just did research until he finally found what he was looking for. She had faith in his abilities. Speaking of which…

"Will, Dawn, Angel, why don't you help Giles out with whatever research he needs. Xander, can you and I talk for a bit?" Buffy asked, walking to the front of the shop, away from the main group. Tara frowned and followed them.

"What's up Buff?" Xander asked as soon as he and the two blondes were out of hearing range of even the vampires.

"I just wanted to… compare notes as it were. See what all was different between my world and the last world I was on to this one. Other than…"

"Being married to Deadboy?" Xander inserted. Buffy smiled and nodded.

"I thought I loved him once. But then Angelus… and the Mayor… and a whole lot of other things. Have you ever heard of… a girl named Faith?" Buffy asked, looking nervous.

Xander frowned in concern. "Yeah, she's the second Slayer Buff. She's being held up at Maximum security at the prison. After she woke up from the coma you… uh, your… our Buffy put her in, she…

"Switched bodies with my double?" Buffy asked with a hopeful tone. Xander nodded, somewhat surprised. Buffy sighed in relief.

"On the last world… Faith never made it past Kakistos. She died making sure he died with her."

Xander was stunted by that. "Oh… wow. Uh, I mean… geez. I-I see why you ask now. Now who's Anya and why did you look at me when you asked about her?"

Buffy smiled, remembering the last conversation she had with a Xander about his past love life. "Uh, did you break up with Cordelia in high school?"

"What?" Xander nearly screeched. "Don't get me wrong here Buff, but don't you usually have to be _dating_ someone to break up with them?" Buffy just patiently nodded. "Willow and I have been going out since before you showed up Buff. I mean, yeah, there was during the whole Angelus thing I kinda had a thing for you, uh I mean," Buffy put up her hand to forestall the awkward explanation he would have given.

"It's ok Xander. Where I'm from you and Willow "broke up" when you were six because you stole her Barbie doll. Willow was still pining for you, but when I showed up… well, you did everything you could think of to get me to like you the way Willow liked you. And if you've been dating for so long, what the hell took you so long to ask her to marry you!" she slapped his arm.

"Ow! Slayer strength!" he whined.

"Sorry, but Willow's been in love with you like forever and from my point of view you never reciprocated. Instead of dating each other, she started dating this guitarist in a band named Oz, who incidentally later became a werewolf, and you shacked up with Cordelia. I think it was the whole opposites attract thing. Anyway… about a year after all that, you and Wills were caught kissing by Cordy and Oz, and Cordelia accidentally summoned up Anyanka, demon patron of scorned women. Somehow Anya lost her powers and became human and… while me and Willow were in college, you two started having sex together. A… lot of sex together. According to Anya anyway."

Xander blinked and he finally breathed. "Wow. There's just no other word for it. Wow. Me and Cordelia. Brrrr!" Buffy slapped him again. "Ow!"

"Pay attention. What happened here instead?"

"Well… after… Jesse, Willow was severely depressed, and I wasn't exactly unaffected myself. The… Barbie incident as I like to call it, lasted about a week and then we "made up". Something I think Willow's parents put her up to. Nothing really serious, we were just a couple, but we still hung with Jesse and stuff. When you showed up, ok yeah I was stunned. But I still had the loyalty to Willow so I never went beyond fantasy stuff. Usually involving both you and Willow at the same time."

Buffy blushed, but told him to move on with her eyes.

"Anyway… uh, you and Angel got cuddly after Spike and Drusilla tried to raise the Judge, and thus Angelus. Things got really bad, especially after he started leaving his…gifts."

"Willow's fish," Buffy answered.

"And the pictures of you while you slept," Xander put in as well. "We found the de-invite spell just in time and… then Miss Calendar." Buffy turned her head down. "I'm sorry I couldn't save her," she mumbled. "I'm sorry that Giles was the one that had to stake her." Buffy looked up in shock at Xander.

"But… Angelus just broke her neck… didn't he?"

Xander shook his head, a dark and haunted look in his eyes. "He turned her. She stalked Giles the same way Angelus was stalking you. Giles was finally the one to do it while you fought Angelus in front of Acathla."

"Did… did she… my double, did she run away after sending Angel to hell?" Buffy had to know.

Xander looked confused and even Tara shown the same. "Willow managed to cast the soul spell just in time. She was going to cast it again for Miss Calendar, but Giles took her out before she could. Angelus never figured out how to open Acathla up Buffy."

Buffy stared in disbelief. "But… So she didn't send him to hell. That's probably why they finally got married. What about the Gem of Amara?"

"Angel hid it so nobody else could find it. Spike dug it up; you fought him for it, and gave it to Angel, your fiancé by then. He only uses it for Apocalypse emergencies. Now what was with calling Wills gay?"

Now Buffy was the one that looked nervous. Tara spoke up herself, "Y-yeah, and… why d-did you look at the both of us l-like that?"

Buffy tried stalling for as long as she could but after half a minute she finally blurted, looking guilty as sin, "On my world and the one just before here, Tara and Willow were together. An item." At their disbelieving looks, she continued, "Oz broke up with her. Did I mention he was a werewolf?"

"I caught that," Xander said dully, his eyes glazed over. Tara looked like she was going into shock.

"Would this have anything to do with both of them being witches?" Xander asked. Tara looked terrified between Buffy and Xander. Buffy just shrugged and answered, "Common interest."

"Same Wicca group?" Tara asked. Buffy nodded.

"Xander I never…" Tara tried to say something, but he just held up his hands. Then he looked into Tara's eyes. "I love her. I have always loved her, I always will love her. She said yes when I asked her to marry me. Tara I want you to do me a favor."

"Uh… ok," she said meekly, looking somewhat afraid.

"If Willow ever comes to you with… things about our marriage, or our relationship, things that I need to know, even if she swears you to silence about them. I want you to come to me and tell me." The look in his eyes was strong enough that Tara didn't even hesitate in nodding her agreement.

"Xander… I don't think that Willow, _your_ Willow would abandon you so casually. Oz broke her heart and in both worlds Tara was the one there to pick up the pieces. Your doubles, however, were too busy with their Anyas to do the same." Buffy explained.

Xander blinked. "Oh."

Then he looked at Tara with a near heart-breaking look in his eyes, "Please Tara?"

Tara blinked in shock. Then, smiling somewhat, she nodded again and said, "OK Xander. I will."

"Thank you."

"Uh… Buffy?" Giles called from the corner. The three of them startled and then made their way to the group. Angel and Willow were still pouring over a couple of the scrolls; Dawn was nervously standing off to the side.

"Yeah Giles?" Buffy asked.

"Uh… as difficult as this is, I need you to answer a few questions for me. About, um, about the night of your battle with Glory. Before you found yourself in the other dimension that is," Giles asked her gently.

Buffy nodded, and trying to keep control of her emotions, she related with as much detail as she could recall everything that happened that night. Giles was writing this down in a notebook as she spoke, and all the others were paying close attention to all that she was saying. When she finished, Giles wrote down a couple more things, and they all looked at him expectantly.

He pulled one of the scrolls over to him and began to read it carefully. The tension just kept rising higher and higher the more Giles went over the parchment. Finally Buffy couldn't take it anymore.

"Giles!" she called, he looked up at her, "Speak!"

Xander and Willow, and even Angel giggled somewhat, while Giles looked mostly admonished and turned back to the scroll while answering the gang's demands for answers. "Well, with such little time to fully go over everything from this box, I can only hypothesize as to what happened to, uh… throw you off course as they say."

"Off course of where?" Buffy asked with a dread feeling in her gut.

"Apparently, Glory chose that position, the tower, because that spot alone with the Key's energy flowing into it, opened directly to Glory's, er…"home". That instead you fell into another universe either speaks of a great error on Glory's part… or…"

"Or?" Angel was the one to prod Giles this time. "Giles I really do not like 'or' when it involved my… uh, when it involves Buffy. What 'or'?"

Giles was silent as he took off his spectacles and absently rubbed them with a handkerchief. "Or something else interfered. This is not as exact as three centimeters to the left, or if she fell at a constant rate Angel. When dealing with matters of supernatural… _nature_ of this kind, things tend not only to be too literal, but also to be rather blunt and very simple minded. Either the Glory of Buffy's home universe picked the wrong spot… or something… interfered."

"What do you mean "interfered" Giles?" Buffy asked.

"Nothing in these scrolls point to anything about the portal itself that the Key opens, only little tidbits, very little tidbits I might add, about what the Key can do, as well as several ceremonies and other phenomenon, but nothing about the portal that Glory opened. Nothing _about_ it at any rate." Giles sighed and rubbed his face, finally replacing his spectacles.

"Giles," Buffy tried again, keeping her voice soft and gentle, "What do you mean interfered?"

"I mean the only reason that I can fathom why you are here and not in a hell dimension Buffy, is that some other god, or the God, or an honest-to-god _real_ angel pushed you through the portal into that other dimension rather than let gravity have its work on you… as it did with… our Buffy." Giles looked down in shame.

Buffy blinked. She was… _saved_ by… an act of god? She shook her head. "But why didn't I just stay in that universe? We even had a plan worked out on finding my way back home, and all of a sudden I'm thrown here? What kind of "saving" does that?!" she screeched.

"I'm sorry Buffy, I have no idea why or how this could have happened to you," Giles apologized, looking quite pitiful as he hung his head in shame.

Buffy closed her eyes again and tried to get control of her breathing and her emotions. "All right. Fine. We'll just do the same thing we did in the last universe. Wills, you're a witch, right? I'm just making sure."

"Yeah," Willow nodded.

"And Tara?"

"Sorry Buffy, I'm just a, a practitioner. I-I know the arts, I c-can even do simple spells. But I d-don't have any real power," Tara apologized.

Buffy nodded, "Yeah I figured that when I saw that you were wearing silk stockings and not a trace of rosemary on you. The two Taras that I've met and know always wear rosemary for protection. What? I actually pay attention when my Willow goes on, and on, about witch-stuff."

"Your Willow?" Angel repeated, an almost hurt look on his face.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "As a matter of fact I used to be dating an Army Ranger. Willow, on *my* world was with Tara. That's what I meant by the whole Willow gay thing. And if I don't show possession on the people I know, you'll just get confused on whether I mean them or you. Now, you guys did have Olag the troll here, right? Please tell me you did."

"Yes, as a matter of fact, it was how we got the hammer…" Giles grinned, "for our Buffy to use to defeat Glory."

Buffy smiled. "And you sent him to the world of whatever thing Trolls like?"

Confused glares were shared all around. "No," Giles answered, "Willow just sealed him back in the crystal he was trapped within. We just forgot to send the hammer with him."

Buffy's face fell. "But you do know *how* to send objects, like people to other worlds right Wills?"

Willow nodded, her face serious. "Yeah. We just have to be sure of where we're sending you. No random guesses Buffy."

"I know that. We were working on a viewing spell option to try and *find* my home and then just send me back. Unfortunately the best we got was enchanting a mirror to "lock on" to one person or object and once found could always find them again. I don't suppose you could work with any of this on a way of finding my home reality, huh?"

Willow's face scrunched up in concentration as she considered Buffy's request.

"I… could… I think. I know I have the power to enchant an object, but… I have no idea how to go about doing anything like that. I just… I don't have enough experience to try. I'm sorry Buffy," Willow's face was almost heart-broken. Buffy immediately felt guilty for putting the pressure on her best… on her double's best friend. She blinked, her _dead_ double.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, the blonde Slayer took a deep breath.

"It's all right Wills, I guess… I don't know. Do you think it'll happen again? Me suddenly changing universes?" she asked.

Everyone looked at Giles, but to everyone's surprise, it was Angel who answered. "More than likely. Other than the viewing spell, and it locking on to you, there is no reason for you to have suddenly been brought here. It might take two weeks, it might take longer than that… or you might be here for less than an hour. But the fact remains… there's nothing we can do."

"Well… I could still try and send her to another universe," Willow suddenly said in the gloom that had followed Angel's statement. "Or, or… t-to that one she was in before here. She said, I mean, you said Buffy that they were on the way to finding a way to send you home. I can send you back there."

"How? If it was that simple, then the Willow and Tara of that world could have "sent me back". I don't suppose you know something they don't, or couldn't know?" Buffy asked.

"Your aura," Willow stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "The point at which you appeared should hold the aura of the universe you were in last for up to one day. I just have to get a read on that aura and then I can send you to the universe that matches. Real easy. And no danger either. I can set up safety spells that bring you back here if things go wrong, or make it so nothing happens at all."

Everyone just kinda stared at her, not sure what to say or think.

"Why don't we… hold off on that for a while, give Buffy enough time to get… oriented," Angel finally proposed.

Buffy immediately shook her head in disagreement. "I'm not looking to spend another two weeks away from my home, and as much as I'd love to fill in for the Buffy you guys lost, that is not fair to _my_ friends and _my_ family. I'm game when you are Wills," Buffy nodded confidently at the red witch.

Now everyone stared at the Slayer, not sure what to say. Giles this time was the first to break the silence. "I understand your reasons Buffy, and I know you too well enough to argue. I'll help however I can."

Xander was the next, after a silent moment, he nodded and said, "Yeah. Come on Wills, I'll help you set up." The engaged couple quickly left for the back room, specifically the bathroom Buffy had appeared in.

Dawn, however, was beginning to look miserable.

"You want to leave me again," she half wailed, half whimpered, tears starting to run down her face again. "Why do you hate me?!"

Buffy closed her eyes, fighting her own tears at Dawn's words. Thankfully, she was saved from having to say what she was going to say.

"Dawn, that's enough!" Angel snapped. He came up behind the young Summers and physically shook her, just enough to startle her out of crying though. "This is not your sister, and she's not my wife. We can't keep her here because we want her back, or to live the life her double led in her place. That's not fair to her, that's not fair to her family and friends, and most of all, it is not fair to us."

Buffy looked at Angel in confusion, Dawn, through her tears, looked up at her brother-in-law with the same expression. "Our Buffy is gone, and she won't be coming back this time. We…" his voice broke for a moment, "we have to move on. That is how life is supposed to go. We live, we die, and those that get left behind mourn… and then move on, until it's their time to go."

"You won't die," Dawn snapped angrily.

"I can be killed though," Angel pointed out. "It ripped my soul to pieces when Buffy…died. I loved her… I love her with all my soul, all my being. I just hope that when I reach my redemption, when it is my time, that my soul will spend eternity with her."

"So what, you're going to commit suicide the moment she leaves? Then I'll really be alone!" Dawn cried.

"No!" Angel snapped angrily, silencing the former Key.

"No," he said quieter, "I will never leave you Dawn, and neither will Spike. You know that. I'm going to continue fighting though. It's the least I can do… for her."

"Then so will I," Dawn said resolutely after a minute of silence.

"NO!" both Angel, Buffy, and Giles all shouted immediately.

"Dawn, I do not want you to…"

"Buffy would never forgive me if I let you…"

"Dawn, I absolutely refuse to let you anywhere near…"

"SHUT UP!" Tara screamed over the racket of the three protesting adults.

Everyone stared in wide-eyed disbelief, suddenly and meekly quiet. Tara, as Willow had been years ago, suddenly flushed crimson and almost immediately lost all nerve when she saw all eyes were on her. However, the blonde practitioner was also experienced enough to know to not back down. Quickly getting her nerve back, her eyes steeled and she began to rebuke the adults.

"We came here to discuss whether or not to keep the Magic Box open. Buffy showing up was just a surprise, and we'll have to deal with that. Angel, Dawn is your responsibility, and though she is not a Slayer, she is her own woman, and older than Buffy was when she was Chosen. The least you could do is teach her to defend herself rather than keep her from all the fighting. Giles, same thing. And Buffy, Willow might not be able to do anything today, and even if she can, there is very little to guarantee that it will work, so a little foresight about where you'll be staying might be a good idea." They all stared at her. Still blushing she added, "And Dawn, you're still too young to be involved in fighting, so stop bluffing on wanting to fight and other stuff. I'm done now."

Buffy stared, blinking for some moments. Then she pinched herself, and winced when it hurt. Then she stared at Angel, and then double-checked that he had a wedding band on his hand. "OK, did I like just shift back to that last universe, or what?" she blurted.

Dawn chuckled but the others looked confusedly at her. "Tara was, well I guess you could call it "uber-confident", kinda like you are right now."

"R-really?" Tara stammered, blushing and trying to crawl inside herself like a turtle would into its shell.

"Yeah. Glad to see some things aren't limited to single universes," Buffy added in a more tender tone.

Any more talk was interrupted as Willow came running back out into the main store with Xander right behind her. Both had worried expressions on their faces, Xander's concern more on Willow while the redhead was still fretting over what she had discovered.

"Wills! Any luck?" Buffy asked hopefully.

Willow stopped abruptly and stared at Buffy for several tense moments before finally answering, depressed, "No, but…it's worse than that Buffy. Much worse I'm afraid."

The Slayer did _not_ like the sound of that, and her face apparently showed it because Willow added, "You aren't dying or anything, but… I don't think you can go home either. It, it's certainly not within my power, or any other witch's for that matter, to do much, if anything about this."

"Willow, what's wrong? You're kinda starting to freak me out here, and if anyone would, you of all people should know you should not freak out a distraught Slayer," Buffy half-threatened, half-warned.

Willow took a deep breath, and only when she unsteadily made her way to the table did everyone notice that Xander was mostly supporting her weight. Once she was settled comfortably, enough, Xander did not once leave her side, like a guard dog. Buffy, carefully trying to figure out what was wrong with her friend, slowly made her way to sit directly in front of the redheaded mage.

Willow was pale, and her skin moistened with a fine layer of sweat, and whenever she moved them, her hands trembled. If Buffy knew absolutely nothing of magic, she would assume that her friend was in some kind of shell shock.

Seated, Buffy stilled Willow's hands with her own, "Willow, tell me, what's wrong?"

Instead of answering, Willow, from the moment of contact, was staring at hers and Buffy's entwined hands. Concerned, Buffy looked as well, but seeing nothing unusual, looked back up into Willow's eyes.

Willow gulped audibly, causing the entire group to gather around them.

"I… It's hard to explain Buffy. I mean, I _know_ what is wrong, but, the words just don't exist to describe it," she paused, swallowing and taking several deep breaths, all the while not taking her hands from Buffy's. "Your… aura, it-it's been, I mean it's…"

"It's all right Love, take your time," Xander said, rubbing Willow's shoulders and arms as any lover might do. Willow, somehow, seemed to draw strength from those seven words from her childhood sweetheart.

"Your aura Buffy," Willow continued, "has been changed. There is no trace of your home dimension, or the last place you were in. There isn't even a trace of any of the portal magicks on you. But that's not what's wrong."

Willow stopped and seemed to be searching her mind for the right words.

"There's no way to accurately describe this, so I'll have to use a euphemism," she admitted. "OK, think of all the people in the world, in one dimension, or universe, or whatever you want to call it, think of everybody as…grains of sand along the beach of a riverbed. The river is the Space/Time continuum, or "reality" in general. The sides of the riverbanks are the universe, or Earth and the solar system, the galaxy and so forth. But, there's also the other side of the riverbank, which might be exactly the same or totally different from the side we're on. Mostly, grains of sand, people, stay on the beach, or just go along with the flow of the river, time, staying close to the side they belong on. What happened to you Buffy… I'm not at all sure what that portal did, but for some reason, you aren't flowing with the river, you're skipping across it. And I can see this isn't exactly working."

"OK, sticking with the river, we are all stuck in it's flow, and what's more, we stay in the same streams, we can't suddenly decide to go up river, or decide we like the stream over there, we're all _stuck_ in the river that's got us. We're all grounded, rooted, connected, to the dimension that we are born in and are from. There are already theories that alternate and parallel universes exist, but the molecules and atoms that make up those universes _vibrate_ at unique rates so that infinite space can co-exist. Our vibrations, our _auras_ are stuck with us, and we are stuck with them for as long as we live."

"But mine…" Buffy trailed off, starting to get some of what Willow was saying. Xander, well the last Xander, had had an in-depth conversation with her on the "Star Trek" view of alternate realities. That conversation, of 5 hours, definitely helped out in what Willow was trying to say now.

"Your aura, _you're_… _un_stuck!" Willow finally exclaimed. "Your aura no longer reads as being from _any_ universe or dimension! Even as you're sitting here before me, instead of reflecting the same _feel_, the same _vibration_ as everything else here, you're just reading like some kind of…out of whack tuning fork that can't actually tune! I think what's happening is that your aura, your vibrational sequence, that which grounds you to a universe, was knocked out of whack by whatever that portal tried to do to you, or something else maybe."

"My point is… I can't send you home, I can't fix what is wrong with, with whatever that portal did to you… _nobody_ could do that actually, because I don't think anybody _anywhere_ has ever encountered something like it! And…"

"There's more bad news?" Buffy said with a sad, almost disbelieving tremble to her voice.

"And… there's nothing I can do to stop you from shifting again. In fact I can almost guarantee that you _will_ shift again, and there's nothing that I know how to do or can even think of to stop it, or even to tell you how long." Willow cried, tears streaming down her face. She added quietly, sounding like a punished child, her head bowed, "I'm sorry Buffy."

Buffy immediately released one of her hands and raised Willow to look her in the eye by her chin. "Hey," she whispered, tears threatening to stain her own cheeks once more, "it means something that you tried, and that you found out what's happening to me is even better. Now we have a direction to focus our research on, and… even if we don't find anything, there's a chance that the next world would have something to help me, right?"

Willow tried to fight her tears as she nodded, but finally the two friends embraced, and everyone felt sympathy for the both of them. Nearly an hour passed with nothing but tears and sniffles penetrating the silence of the shop, until finally all tears had been cried, Angel and Dawn both took Buffy by the shoulders. "Come on Buffy, let's take you home," Dawn said. Angel just looked solemn.

Without protest, Buffy rose and left with them.

[The Married Universe]

_Summers Home_

"Damn," Buffy muttered as soon as they walked into the house at 1630 Revello Drive.

"What?" Angel asked, concerned as he closed the door behind him, and then slipped off the jeweled ring on his finger that he had put on before leaving the magic shop.

"This place looks _exactly_ the same. Kinda freaky when you know that it's not the same universe," Buffy explained as she walked into the living room, where she saw the first, and quite possibly the only differences. The pictures.

There were the ones she knew, the ones of her and Xander and Willow, the ole Scooby gang, some with Cordelia, but none with Oz. There were the family pictures, the one of the entire Summers family, shortly before Buffy had been called as the Slayer, several ones including Dawn, by herself and with Buffy and the rest of the Scoobies. She knew and remembered that Dawn hadn't always existed, but these pictures were the same ones that had always been in her memory since Dawn was sent to her.

And then there were the other ones. Ones that showed Xander and Willow as a couple, Giles was in several that she never remembered even having before, and then, as she walked to the mantle where her mother used to keep several old art pieces, the pictures of Buffy and Angel's wedding.

She wasn't sure how to react to all of this. On the last world, she caught a glimpse of what she and her life would have been like if she had been less selfish and actually _listened_ to her friends and helped them the same they helped her. Now she was getting a tiny glimpse of what life might have been like if she and Angel had found that way to stay and be together. Except for dying by sacrificing herself for her sister, she wasn't disliking what she was seeing here.

Diary Entry

-The Diary of Elizabeth "Buffy" Anne Summers -"The Lost Slayer"-

Why did I call this stupid book Giles gave me to write about the dimensions I'm going through, the diary of the "Lost Slayer"?

Because guess what? I'm lost. In Space/Time as Willow and Xander call it. And I'm a Slayer that has cheated death not once, but _twice_! Well, technically I didn't die that second time, but I came pretty close and was as much meant to as the first time.

Giles gave me this thing, said it would help me, and any of his other counterparts I'll meet when I 'Shift' again. That's what Xander's been calling it anyway. All right, since this is my first entry, basic history of *MY* home universe, and then the other two dimensions I've been through.

Childhood stuff really not important since that itself is two entirely different stories. First, there are my memories of life and blissful ignorant childhood without Dawn, my baby sister. And then there are my memories of Dawn, who is actually a created little girl from a bunch of monks from some place in Russia I think, housing a weapon of unbelievable power called "The Key".

Dawn didn't really exist until my second year of college, that's 2001 A.D. for anybody without a calendar when reading this, or me to answer questions if I actually end up losing this thing.

Key items first, (have to remember to stay focused here) I am Buffy Summers, daughter of Joyce Summers, older sister and protector of Dawn Summers, aka the Key. I am the Slayer, the Chosen One, the boogieman to the boogiemen. One girl in all the world with the strength, the skill, and the power to hunt the vampires and the forces of darkness…and basically slay them. I was "chosen", note the quotes around "Chosen", when I was fifteen and still going to Hemery High School, freshman year, in Los Angeles, California, of the United States of America.

This old guy with an English accent showed up one day and told me all the Slayer stuff. It took him bribing me with what I thought was a buried treasure of money to go to the graveyard and watch two vampires rise from their graves. Without much help from my first "Watcher", the one who trains the Slayer, I dusted the two vamps and was therein introduced to the shadow world of demons, vampires, and the supernatural.

A vampire king named Lothos tried to turn me, or just kill me, by invading my school dance, conveniently located in the School Gym, and confronting me. After taking him out, I accidentally ended up burning down the whole gym to get rid of the rest of the vampires. After that, it didn't stop. I tried to forget, but my Watcher's lessons were too new to ignore, even after he got himself killed to keep Lothos from killing me.

I ran away to Las Vegas for about two weeks, on the trail of some other vampires and managed to stop a vamp-run casino operation, and found out that by the time I got back, my parents had found my diary (whether Dawn showed it to them or they just found it is where my memories get screwy) and decided that I needed some "quiet time" in what is commonly called the nuthouse, but the doctors called an Institution of Mental Health. Ended up "getting my head screwed on straight" by taking out the Director of the Institution, who just happened to be an upper level demon spreading his "seed" through all the female patients at the Institution.

Get back home… Dad and Mom are divorced. Mom can no longer cover our expenses without Dad's paycheck, so we move to a little suburb, where my Mom conveniently found a great job at an Art Gallery (Watchers set the whole thing up), called Sunnydale. Luck has it that I'm still _in_ Sunnydale.

First day of school… I meet Giles for the first time, I meet Xander by way of him helping me pick up books (He is ONLY MY FRIEND, for future reference), and I met Cordelia and Willow. Willow I immediately strove to make friends with and found out she had a big time crush on Xander, hence the only friend deal with him.

That night… Giles is my new Watcher, Xander and Willow's friend Jesse is captured and turned into a vampire, and my two best friends are introduced to my world of the supernatural. The next day, Xander follows me down into the sewers where we learned the fate of Jesse and get chased out of said sewers by just about every vampire down there.

The next day, after some research by Giles and Willow, we learn of the Master, and the Harvest. Long story short, we stopped the Harvest, and Xander staked Jesse. After that, we became the "Slayerettes" and Willow and Xander helped with research while I did the major slaying. Then…I met Angel.

But that…is a perfect time for this story, as the universe I currently occupy, somehow Angel and I got married in this world's history. That SO did not happen to me.

Angel was my first big crush. And I mean BIG, but when we first knew each other, he was just the "friend" who wanted to help me kill them all. All the vampires. Took a while, but I finally cracked his broody exterior and learned the whole story. Liam something was turned in early 1800's by a vampire named Darla, and became Angelus, the demon with the face of an Angel. His nickname was the Scourge of Europe. Then, Angelus did a no-no and killed the favored daughter of a gypsy clan. They're big on vengeance those gypsies.

They cursed him with his soul, so that he might suffer for eternity for his crimes. And for the next century, that was all he did, suffer. Until a demon named Whistler showed him me right after I got called and he got all inspired and he became my "friend."

There was this prophecy where I was destined to die by the Master's hand. I fought tooth and nail against it, but it wasn't until Giles said he would rather go down in my place that I finally made up my mind, and went. And died.

And then was brought back less than five minutes later by Xander with CPR, who had dragged Angel down to show him where I was.

For the whole summer, spent with Dad, I was not the same. It took, taking the line Xander used, "mashing my enemies' bones into talcum powder", specifically the Master's, to get back to "normal". After that, Angel and I began to…court is the old fashioned word for it. Spike and Drusilla also showed up, but I can save them for later.

On my 17th birthday, Angel and I slept together, and inadvertently, I had released the Scourge of Europe by giving "Angel" a moment of happiness. It was my first time, and people wonder why I have trouble with boyfriends.

In this universe, Angelus turned Ms. Calendar and the two of them haunted Giles and me for months before it finally came to a head and Willow found the spell to give both Angel and Ms. Calendar their souls back. In mine, Angelus killed Ms. Calendar, and then when he found the petrified demon Acathla, he let Drusilla kill Kendra, the second Slayer, put Willow and Xander in the hospital, and kidnapped and then tortured Giles for days before my Watcher finally cracked under Drusilla and told them how to open Acathla's mouth, which would then unleash hell on Earth. Literally.

In the end, for me, just as Willow successfully gave Angel his soul back… Acathla's mouth opened and I had to send the man I loved to hell, just to save the world.

I ran away that summer, spent most of it on the streets of LA and San Fran. It wasn't until I had a long talk with three witches that I got my head together and went home. About the time that I got home, Kendra's replacement showed up. Faith.

Empty page

I can't talk about Faith, but I left room for… I don't know. I'll be able to tell my story with her later. Finding out she was dead on the last world, but is in the same place she is on mine in this world… it makes it difficult to even think about her.

But for this world's history, Angel was given his soul, but Acathla was never opened, and Giles had to stake the vampire that had been Ms. Calendar himself. After reparations made and forgiveness given, I'm told, this world's Buffy and Angel continued their relationship, but now careful of the 'happiness' clause in his curse. Willow and Giles, after that summer was over, even started looking for ways to erase that clause. I haven't been told if they ever succeeded.

Angel doesn't like to talk about his relationship with his ex-wife when I'm around. Oh yeah, they got married the moment that my double here graduated from High School. What's even weirder, is that in my world, Xander was too dense to know Willow was in love with him and ended up in some kind of love/passion/hormone thing with Cordelia, and then they broke up for when Xander and Willow finally kissed for real. Willow finally moved on from Xander with a guitarist named Oz about the same time Xander and Cordy were getting together.

Xander then, while the rest of us were in college, started having sex with a former vengeance demon named Anya. Long story. Willow, also in college, broke up with Oz because, oh did I mention Oz is a werewolf? Anyway, another, female, werewolf showed up and tried to take Oz from Willow. They broke up because Oz said he didn't want to hurt Willow and needed to learn how to control his wolf side. He was gone for more than eight months, during which time Willow was comforted by me, and also a witch named Tara McClay. Who happened to be… interested in Willow.

After a while, so was Willow. She claimed to be gay, but I actually gave it some thought when Wills and Tara were becoming a real item, and I think she's actually bisexual. Not that I'm one to debate semantics.

In this world however, Xander and Willow dated throughout high school and they're only NOW getting engaged, where I didn't even meet Angel until I moved to Sunnydale, didn't start dating him till my Junior year in High School, and MARRIED him the moment I graduated! These two have known each other since kindergarten!

Right now I'm in… well "my" room, but it's actually, well, used to be, my double's mother's, until she died. In my universe, it was mine. Anyway, during her last days, this room was her mother's in this dimension, and the main bedroom was her double's and Angel's. I underline to indicate my double.

I'm writing in this, hoping to stave off sleep for as long as I can. I can hear Angel still awake downstairs. He may be a vampire, but he still makes noise.

Maybe… maybe if I write about my day I can buy another hour or two…

See earlier events

Summers House

Three days after her first shift, as they absently began calling it, Buffy had found her niche in this new world. Well, new to her at any rate. And though it was the second universe from her own that she had come to, it was the first _shift_ that had not involved the key portal.

In the last universe, she had fit in as the second Slayer, Dawn's new best friend, and the Slayerettes' latest crisis victim that needed help. In this universe, she became Dawn's older sister/mother once more, but having finally come to terms with her mother's death, she was just a little bit better at it than she had been before. She was also female wedding planner for her two best friends, a case of study (ergo a MAJOR happy) for Giles, and just another thing for Angel to brood over. At least as far as she cared on the last one.

Despite Glory's involvement and death, the Hellmouth remained the Hellmouth, and Buffy certainly didn't get lax in her slaying skills. In fact she had received several surprised glares when she had commented on how lame all the vampires and demons were, but also had gotten numerous praises on her "superior" technique. Personally, the Slayer figured everyone was just surprised that she could handle herself without Angel there to back her up.

However, it was not until the fourth night that things became… interesting.

A weary group stumbled into the living room of the Summers' home. It was almost 3 AM, and Dawn was fast asleep upstairs. Buffy, carrying a demon-bloodied axe over her shoulder, lead them in, each looking quite the worse for the wear. Angel was the least affected, but that was because he wasn't carrying any of the demon part covered weapons or…other stuff.

"Well," Buffy began as she walked over to the weapons chest and prepared to put the axe back inside. Just before she did though, she took a pre-prepared cleaning cloth and got the worst and most of the blood off of it. "That was…"

"Disgusting," Xander inserted.

"Revolting," Willow suggested, putting away her own weapons.

"Gross?" Angel tried.

Buffy rolled her eyes up in thought before a sly grin spread across her features and she finished with, "…fun."

They all stared, disbelievingly at her. "What?" she asked at the stares, "You never liked to play in the mud as a kid? It'll wash off."

"But…the way they just…popped…" Willow, sounding thoroughly disgusted, related.

Buffy shrugged. "Seen, lived through, and killed worse, uglier, and way more disgusting. Scabby demons, remember?" They all had blank stares, so Buffy just rolled her eyes and told them to forget it. Another difference.

Finished with the axe, she turned back around to see them all still staring at her expectantly. "What?" she asked. Angel just shrugged like it should have been obvious and repeated, "Scabby demons?"

Buffy rolled her eyes again and let out an annoyed sigh. "It's a long story, and as fun as playing "Pop the demon head" was tonight, I'm tired and _really_ not up for telling it."

"OK, OK, we can take a hint," Xander said, sounding depressed, but Willow quickly snuggled into his embrace and they were as luvy dovey as they had been since Buffy had…met them…

Reminded so suddenly of her predicament, all pleasure at seeing her two best friends so happy together quickly evaporated and she stealthily snuck upstairs, leaving Angel to escort the future Harris couple out the door and safely to their apartment.

She skipped her room and went straight for the bathroom, opting to use one of the robes she found in the linen closet for after her shower. Stripping while the water warmed up, she quickly checked herself over. Remembering the scabby demon incident also reminded her of the side effects of that little adventure, and she wanted to make sure none of the blood was being absorbed into her so she wouldn't be getting any "aspect of the demon" in the next few days. Thankfully, what little she had on her, was not soaking into her skin, so she was fairly confident that she and the others were in no danger.

Checking the temperature to her liking, she quickly stepped in and first thing done was put the gore-covered parts under the water so it would rinse clean. She enjoyed the warm water, and thoroughly cleaned herself with the soaps and scented shampoos. A very nice way to relax and unwind after a fulfilling evening of slaying.

Halfway through her shower, just as she was getting ready to rinse the conditioner out, she noticed something. Not something external, quite the opposite in fact. She was horny! And this was hardly "hungry and horny" horny that Faith talked about after slaying, which Buffy had never openly admitted to feeling herself. This was more…_more_!

Unfortunately the showerhead was firmly attached to the wall. Grumbling with increasing frustration, she hurried through the rest of her shower, idly remembering her time, well actually _all _her times with Riley, but doing nothing physical to relieve herself just yet.

Finally, she was done and only bothering to get the worst of the water off her, unable to stand the coarseness of the towel, she wrapped herself up in the silk robe and skipped to her room. She thought it rather ironic that during her last days, this room was her mother's in this dimension, and the main bedroom was her double's and Angel's. No one had explained how that decision came about, and she hadn't asked.

Just before she jumped into bed, she heard Angel finally come up the stairs and start his own shower.

She shivered slightly. Despite everything that had happened between her and her Angel, she still felt drawn to him. Still felt the love that had beat in her chest, still felt the physical attraction that had always been between them, and she still had naughty thoughts, especially with him not two walls removed from her, naked. And wet.

Gulping loudly, Buffy tried to bury herself under the covers, holding the pillow over her ears in hope of drowning out the sound of every move the souled vampire made, which her Slayer hearing cruelly reported to her without fail.

Finally, after getting herself off three times by just rubbing the sheet harshly between her legs and listening through pillow and cover to Angel in the shower, the sound of water quit. Her Slayer hearing wouldn't quit though and she imagined with startling detail each move Angel made as he went from the shower, to the main bathroom, to the bathroom sink, to the closet in his bedroom, then as he changed clothes, and then as he walked from the closet to the bed, and got into that large, lonely, empty, king-sized bed made for two but sleeping only one, and…

Buffy forced herself out of the covers, sitting up in bed, a wild look in her eye. A very wild, unnatural look, as her pupils had changed color to an off purple.

Across town, as she would find out tomorrow morning, Xander and Willow, fresh out of their showers, had the same look in their eyes as they lay down in their bed and had the hottest sex they had ever had for every record they went by.

Angel, his face human, opened purple-hued eyes and watched as Buffy, naked, crawled into bed with him, and they mimicked what their friends across town were doing.

Diary Entry

-The Married Universe

That's what I've decided to call this particular version of HELL that I'm living in! I can't believe what happened last night! Oh, by the way, I'm in the Magic Box right now, writing. After waking up next to Angel I kind of wanted answers and in my mind "answers" always equal "Giles."

All right, back it up Summers and explain a little. Last night, Angel, Xander, Willow and I were out patrolling. We came across a pack of half a dozen really ugly pink demon thingies. Giles called them… "Aphorides". They were real slimy. Anyway, apparently they operate by covering their victims in slime cocoons and then absorb said victims sexual energy.

Funny thing though that he didn't mention until after Xander and Willow started talking about the FANTASTIC SEX THEY'D HAD LAST NIGHT, was that those nearest when the Aphorides are killed, and are also covered in their slimy blood that comes exploding out when you cut their heads off, ALL THAT SEXUAL ENERGY IS RELEASED INTO THEM! Namely, me, Xander, Willow, and Angel.

Oh, yeah, I found out that Giles and Willow did find a cure so Angel could have a "happy" and keep his soul, by anchoring said soul to his body via that dove tattoo on his right shoulder. Suffice to say, I now know that despite being totally "vanilla" as Faith would say, Riley really is better than Angel.

_Magic Box (Married Universe)_

Buffy had been screaming from the moment that she and Angel entered the shop, the former under a black paint tarp. The volume increased enough to rattle all the shelves in the shop many times after she'd been told that Angel's soul was as permanent as it could be. Willow still wouldn't let any of them tell her _how_ they did that.

Now, late afternoon, with Dawn due to arrive within a few minutes with her final grades for the year, she was sitting quietly in the corner, at the table, writing in the journal Giles had given her.

"OK, now we all know why you never got her mad," Xander commented. "Geez Louise! Cordy could take lessons from her in arguing. You two ever fight like this before?"

Angel shot his…he thought it over for a second, and then couldn't help grinning as the thought finished itself with no trouble…his friend an angry glare. "She's not _my_ Buffy Xander," he snapped. "And no… Buffy and I never fought. If we did, it was usually about…"business". This girl… she had her heart torn apart by the Angel of her world. First with Angelus, then with him leaving like that…"

"Yeah, but…" Willow started to say, but Angel interrupted her.

"No, she's entirely justified to everything she said," he told them. "I just wish I could have made it better instead of making it worse for her."

"You didn't make it worse," they heard Buffy say, directly behind them.

Giles, who was behind the counter and had been watching her at the table jumped, as startled as the others at how quickly and silently the Slayer moved. "Buffy! Don't do that! I'm not as young as I used to be," the ex-Watcher complained.

She smiled warmly at him. "Sorry Giles," she apologized. Then she looked back at Angel and the others. "You didn't make it worse," she repeated, "It…well, it was the wrong thing to do…but it gave me some much needed closure. At least…with my Angel."

She stopped and then stepped closer and gave him a kiss on his left cheek. "They say you always remember your first love," she said softly, "And I always will. But I don't love "Angel" like that anymore. Last night…while good, was just the final goodbye for me and my "Feelings", capital F, for my Angel. She…she probably still does love you. But I can't, and I'm not going to hurt you by saying that I do."

Angel nodded, and then gently cupped her face with his hand. "I understand," he said just as softly as she had spoken. And the way he had said it, she knew he did. "And I'm glad I could help you," he added with a grin. She smiled as well.

She stepped back just as the doorbells chimed, revealing Dawn walking into the shop. "Hey! Guess what? I passed!" Dawn exclaimed, holding up a Report card that even from the front door, showed C+ or better grades on them. She rushed forward to show the gang.

"That's great Dawn!" Buffy gushed, truly happy and proud for her double's sister, hoping that of all the differences between this world and her home, _this_ was _not_ one of them.

All of a sudden, a wave of… no, not nausea, _vertigo_ passed over Buffy and she stumbled slightly, back into the middle of the shop.

"Buffy?!" Willow cried, worried as she noticed the seemingly sudden sickness of the Slayer.

"Oh God, please, not now!" Buffy cried, sounding as sick as she looked as she bent over from the overwhelming vertigo sensation.

"Buffy! What's happening?" Angel shouted, holding Dawn back a little.

She looked up at the friends she had made on this world. "It…it's happening. I'm…" she couldn't finish, biting back on a scream as she instead leapt forward to the table to grab her diary and hug it close to her, as well as the jacket she had been wearing, which still had all the weapons in it she'd placed there last night.

She managed to make it back to the middle of the room before the next wave of vertigo hit, but it was so strong she was actually driven to her knees. Tears streaming down her face, she looked right at her double's sister and cried out, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Dawn! I'm so—*" She was cut off as suddenly her entire body seemed to hyper-vibrate until she was nothing but a stretched blur that quickly faded into nothing.

Dawn cried out in pain, crying against Angel, her brother-in-law. Losing her sister twice was almost more than she could bear, but Angel, and the others, would help her through it. Right now though, everyone was just sending their prayers to the Lost Slayer.


	74. Slayer Rangers: Judge Jury and Ranger!

Title: Slayer Rangers: Judge, Jury, and Ranger!

Authors: Joshua & Troy Guffey

Summary: In the aftermath of Halloween, the Slayerettes discover another side effect while Spike works to bring Drusilla to full strength.

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon and Mutant/Enemy hold the rights to Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV show, and anything related to the Power Rangers was inspired by the television shows written by Haim Saban and Shuki Levi.

"Previously on Slayer Rangers:"

"My, what synchronization. Since it seems you all work so well together, why don't you all show up wearing matching costumes, too?" Snyder's tone allowed no argument.

"Well, I couldn't help but notice that there is a lack of Power Ranger costumes. Sure, there are the Villains and Putty costumes that are already all off the shelf, but not Power Ranger. These…are the Wrist Communicators the Power Rangers have when in civilian dress. We could go as the civilian Power Rangers. Are you getting this?" he asked just to twist Cordelia's chain, as though she were deaf or dumb about the concept.

"Chaos. I remain, as ever, they faithful, degenerate son."

"Janus, evoco vestram animam. Exaudi meam causam. Carpe noctem pro consilio vestro. Veni, appare et nobis monstra quod est infinita potestas." (Janus, I invoke your spirit. Hear my plea. Seize the night for your own reason. Come, appear and show to us that which is infinite power.)

"Persona se corpum et sanguium commutandum est. Vestra sancta praesentia concrescet viscera. Janus! Sume noctem!" (The mask transforms itself into flesh and blood. Your holy presence curdles the heart. Janus! Take the night!)

"Show time!"

Thunder roared as the Rangers transformed.

Xander: "White Slayer Power!"

Cordelia: "Pink Slayer Power!"

Oz: "Black Slayer Power!"

Willow: "Blue Slayer Power!"

Amy: "Yellow Slayer Power!"

Buffy: "Red Slayer Power!" A blinding flash of light, and a rainbow stream of energy surrounded the teens for a moment longer before the Slayer Rangers suddenly stood before the horde of Putties and demon.

"FIRE!" all six shouted at once and a rainbow of six colors shot out of the beam.

The beam went completely through the first demon. He began to flame as if caught in sunlight. The beam came out of his back and immediately divided into two beams identical to the one fired from the Ranger's super-weapon. These beams hit the next two nearest demons where the same thing happened. Again and again. The result was a brilliant rainbow web of destruction connecting all the demons for several seconds.

"I want in. I can't just stand by while…demons keep trying to destroy the world and do nothing."

"…I can't just sit by and wait to be rescued by you guys while you're trying to save the world at the same time."

"I'm in too," was all Oz said. He had a look that was similar to Willow's "Resolve Face".

Unseen and unnoticed by anyone, at the moment the newest _official_ Slayerette stood up to her "flock of sheep", the coin that Xander had given to her, which she had kept close to her even as she slept, glowed a brief rainbow of colors before returning to a soft pinkish glow for the duration of the conflict before fading away as she and Xander walked away.

The coin in Xander's back pocket, in Amy, Buffy, and Willow's purses, and Oz's pick-case, a similar phenomenon happened at the exact same moment to their individual coins that they also had kept close. The flash of rainbow colors, before each settled on a specific and individual color.

"And now, Today on Slayer Rangers:"

Unmarked grave Sunnydale

Buffy stood alone in front of the grave plot. The filled in grave. She'd had Willow find out that Ford had run away from home, chasing her so he could find his "cure". Becoming a vampire. She remembered the Fords; they were too good of people to be told what had really happened to their only son. She made the call that it was better for them to think he was still out there somewhere. Instead of here, in this unmarked grave.

Not that he would be there for much longer.

Buffy heard the footsteps approaching, but didn't react until she was completely surrounded. Then she just looked up at the people before her. "Hey," she whispered hoarsely.

Cordelia stepped forward and gave the blonde Slayer a friendly hug from behind. She still verbally blamed it on being the Pink Ranger for a night, but Cordelia Chase had become a much better person and one of Buffy Summer's best friends since Halloween. And coincidentally, since she and Xander Harris had started dating. Even if the couple only called it "hanging out with a good friend. NOT dating!"

"I'm sorry," Cordy whispered as she let go of the embrace.

"Not your fault," Buffy automatically remarked. "It's mine. I should have…"

"Bullshit Buffy!" Xander snapped angrily, stepping forward. She looked up at him, surprised.

"It's Ford's fault. _He_ is the one that made the deal with Spike, betrayed you, and tried to kill all of us with that steel door trap!" he told her. "The only thing you could possibly be guilty of is that you trusted someone you thought was a friend, and there's nothing wrong with that Buffy. Because for every friend that betrays you," Xander paused as he looked around, and Giles stepped forward out of the shadows, "you've got six more that you can count on for anything."

"He's right Buffy," Amy spoke up. "You can't blame yourself for this. We may not have saved everyone, but we saved a lot of lives, and souls last night. Nobody can save everyone, no matter how good or powerful they are. And sometimes the enemy…" Amy's voice broke as she remembered someone in particular, "…sometimes the bad guy isn't always clear cut. Sometimes they wear the face of someone very close. Closer than we often think."

Buffy realized Amy was talking about her mother just as much as she was talking about Ford, and she understood. The Slayer smiled and nodded, grateful to all her friends. Just then, her gut twinged and she palmed her stake.

"Thanks guys," she whispered just as Ford the vampire burst out of his grave. Before he was fully standing her stake was in and out of his chest, and by the time he was fully standing, he was already crumbling to dust. "I feel better now," she whispered and turned to leave the graveyard. The Slayerettes followed her.

_The Library  
Two Days After Ford's Dusting  
Lunch Time_

Amy came into the Library during her lunch period. She walked up to the counter where Giles was working on something library-y. "Giles, I need to talk to you. In your office, please."

Giles looked a little surprised at this, but he quietly ushered her into his office and they sat down.

"Giles, I've been thinking about things the last couple of days. I'm thinking that there's more that I could do to help out."

"Surely not, you've been training as hard as the others, patrolling, researching, everything."

"But I haven't been giving as much as I can. I've got a question for you. Is talent for magic inherited? How about talent for Black Magic?"

Giles was quite surprised by the questions, and he took a moment to consider his response. "Yes, you're quite right that talent for magic can be inherited. As for the other: Absolutely not. Magic is magic in that respect. The whitest of White witches could have a daughter who is blackest of the Black. And vice versa. You needn't worry about becoming your mother."

Amy appeared relieved with this information. "Would it help to have an ethical teacher? What I'm getting up the courage to ask: Do you think you can teach me magic?"

Giles appeared to be somewhat uncomfortable about this request. "I have very little talent for magic. I hardly think I would be the best of teachers for that subject."

"You did OK in undoing my mothers work."

"Hmmm, yes, well… I might know of someone else who could teach you. I would have to talk to her first. Her style and taste in magic seem a bit odd to me, since I am a traditionalist. But if you are determined to learn magic, I will find you a teacher that will teach you well."

"Thanks, Giles. This makes me feel so much better." She touched his arm and smiled at him.

_Willow's House  
Several Days Later_

Willow was going through her schoolbag sorting out whatever homework she still had to do, laying it all out on her bed, being as she was at home. It had been just a few days since the gathering at Ford's unmarked grave. School was pretty much the same, but everything else had undergone some major changes.

For starters, both before school and right after, all of the Slayerettes, former Slayer Rangers for one night, gathered at the Library for Giles to instruct them in martial arts and slaying weaponry as any Watcher would with beginning to train a new Slayer. The big difference came in that only one of them was a Slayer, and she had already passed the beginning lessons and was well into the more advanced ones.

Basic exercise however was the same for all of them…even though Buffy could go for longer and with more enthusiasm than any of the others could.

There was also patrol. They had a rotating schedule where everyone had at least one night a week off, including Buffy. Usually at least two other people and Buffy would be on patrol. Angel usually paired with Buffy on nights when the other two were a guy and girl, especially when the ranger pair was Xander and Cordelia. Some weekend nights they had two patrols, communicating with the cell phones that Willow had gotten. She had managed to get some long-range engineering prototypes that would never go into production.

The phones also operated as two-way radios, and were quite rugged. These and other cutting-edge features meant the phones would have been much too expensive for full production for several years. Given the results, not even Jenny Calendar, the only other adult to know of the Slayer and the undead underground and also happened to be Willow's role model, asked any questions on how she had gotten the communication devices.

Furthermore, the name "Slayerettes" had come to mean mostly Willow and Xander, while "Rangers" meant the entire group, including Buffy.

The patrols had been very light since Halloween. They saw only a couple of vampires a week, not counting Angel. Giles told them that they had eliminated practically the entire hostile demon population of Sunnydale on Halloween night, and that it might take a while for it to build up again. This left them with more time for training both individual and as a group. Giles was lacking considerably on group fighting as compared to individual martial arts, but they were coming along nicely in that area as well.

Just as Willow was emptying the last of her schoolbag, something else fell out. Something that Willow could not remember ever _putting_ in her bag before.

Frowning with concern, she tossed the bag away on the floor and stepped closer to get a better look at whatever it was. Patting the cover down, Willow suddenly flinched back as if she had been burned when she realized what it was.

"Oh…oh boy," she mumbled, frightened.

Gathering her courage, and swallowing her fear followed by a large gulp, Willow got closer still and reached out her hand to touch the still-laying golden-looking coin. Less than a foot away from actually touching it, the coin flashed with a rainbow of colors before settling on a solid and steady blue glow.

Willow froze for half a minute, just staring, and then finished what she started and tried to pick up the coin. She did. Nothing changed though. She didn't feel any different and the coin, amazingly, was still glowing. Picking it up, Willow began to examine it with interest.

According to her Halloween chaos-induced memories there should have been a relief of some kind of an animal on one side. The side she was looking at, face up, was not an animal, but a single jagged lightning bolt, which actually kind of reminded her of the big thunder bolt in the original TV Power Ranger's logo.

Taking a deep breath, Willow turned the coin over. She blinked in shock. A beautiful etching of a very powerful looking unicorn stared back up at her. After another minute, the blue glow slowly faded, but the coin and the unicorn relief remained.

Gulping to keep the bile she felt rising down, Willow turned to the phone and muttered to herself, "Gotta call Giles!"

Library

Music was pounding; enough to actually rattle the glass in the windows of the Library. Certainly enough to make Rupert Giles, once known as "Ripper", cringe and cover his ears at the pounding _noise_. Other than his Slayer, as required for calisthenics training, also in attendance and stepping to the beat were Cordelia Chase, Xander Harris, and Daniel "Oz" Osborne.

Oz was sweating lightly but overall he was his usual unflappable self. The other three however were having a fun time of it, the latter of which more because of the look on Giles' face.

"Turn up the music!" Cordy shouted, barely heard of the already booming boom box. Buffy just grinned and nodded her agreement.

Giles tried to say something to the opposition, but he could barely hear himself think, let alone the off chance that someone would hear his voice.

Giles then noticed one of the lights begin flashing on the multi-line telephone. He reached over and turned off the music.

There was a chorus of protest.

All of a sudden Buffy stopped moving. She sensed something, but what she couldn't quite tell. She just stood there stock still for another moment, and then her highly attuned Slayer ears picked up a sound that was not the boom box or one of the others.

"Hey!" Cordy whined with the loss of tunes, but stopped all complaint when they noticed the look on the Slayer's face. Half a second later, they too heard the pounding on the back door of the Library.

"Giles, get that," Buffy ordered, "We'll check out the back. Xander!"

Xander, on cue, tossed Buffy a short sword from the weapons locker and tossed Oz another sword. Cordelia he gave a pair of sais and one of the single-hand crossbows, and took a sword and crossbow for himself. They raced to the back of the stacks.

Giles picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Giles, this is Willow. I just found something freaky. I don't think it's dangerous, but we definitely need to look into it."

"What is it?"

"You know our Power Coins?"

"I don't believe that I do."

"Oh, yeah. I forgot you hadn't seen the show. Well, the Power Rangers on TV have these coins that hold their power. On Halloween, Xander gave us these coins that he'd found, so that the kids wouldn't bother us about our costumes. I just found mine again. It looks just like my Ranger memories say it should."

"And they didn't look that way before?"

"No, when Xander gave them to us, they were totally blank. And it glowed, Giles. Just for a minute or so, but it _glowed_."

"Oh, dear. Yes, bring it over immediately. But be careful, Buffy and the others just rushed out of here with weapons drawn."

"OK, I'll get my weapons and be right over. Call me on my cell if anything happens before I get there."

There was a click as Willow hung up her phone.

Giles thought about it for several minutes then decided that if it concerned "Ranger" business that he had better call in Amy as well. Besides Amy might be needed as well for the business out back.

He picked up the phone and began to dial.

Buffy and the other rangers approached the back door with their weapons drawn. Buffy made a series of gestures as they got there. Everyone nodded and Xander and Cordelia flattened against the wall on either side of the door, weapons ready. Oz hid his sword behind a leg, and waited.

Buffy silently unlocked the deadbolt and the knob lock. She didn't quite slam the door open, despite attempting to do so. There had been the weight of two bodies pressing against the door. The man and woman went tumbling.

Buffy and Xander did not hesitate in action. Xander tossed his crossbow to Oz and started to pull the man away from the woman. Buffy tried to heft the woman off of the man. Tried to, being the operative word.

Her strength was surprising, especially so when she shrugged the Slayer off and said Slayer was slammed back against the door. Everyone was shocked for a moment, as the very unhealthy looking woman had just done that to a Slayer, except for Buffy, who was pissed.

Her face scowled, Buffy dove back for the woman and didn't let herself get thrown this time, instead she grabbed the woman by the shoulders and threw her back against the wall and then punched her solidly a number of times. When she stopped she stared in disbelief for a moment. Instead of the vamp face she had expected, dull electric blue eyes stared at her from beneath a sunken, ashy gray face, marred with dried, open yet unbleeding scars stared back at her.

That moment was all it took for the moving corpse to shove Buffy off of her and make another lunge for the man that Xander was holding. Taking the hint from the guy trying to run away in his arms, both Xander and the guy took off down the stacks for the main library with the corpse and other Rangers behind them.

Before the corpse could catch up to them though, Buffy caught up with her…er, it and using the forward momentum, threw her over the two men, and even the banister and table in the main Library.

Startled by the noise, Giles came out of the office.

The moving corpse got to its feet and almost smiled when it's eyes rested on Giles. The Watcher felt like an Ice Giant had just punched out his guts and then replaced them with blue ice from the Arctic. "Oh my god," he whispered in horror, his face pale, "Deirdre! Oh god! No!"

Before much else could happen though, Buffy was there between the zombie thing and her Watcher in the blink of an eye, pounding away with powerful kicks and punches, driving it slowly back towards the book cage.

Sensing what she was planning, Xander silently directed the others, and Oz went to open the cage door while Cordy stood off to the side, ready to back up any of her friends that needed her help. Xander, the moment that Buffy had the thing right in front of the cage, went up and swept the legs out from under the thing at the same moment Buffy delivered her most powerful roundhouse yet. The thing went sprawling into the cage where Oz and Cordelia slammed the door shut and held it barricaded for the moment it took to lock it. Once the creature was sealed away, they jumped back and joined the others at a safe distance away from the book cage, their weapons all aimed at the decomposing creature.

"Giles! Are you okay?" Buffy asked the moment after she caught her breath.

Giles was looking extraordinarily pale and weak suddenly.

"Giles!" Buffy shouted again, trying to get his attention. Finally she just went up to him and tried to shake him out of it. Not really much of a response, except that he finally said something. "Oh god, what have we done?"

_Willow's House_

Willow put down the phone abruptly and beginning preparing for battle and/or research. Her mind was racing along three tracks: possible trouble at the library, the implications that the Power Coins were active, and what she might need at the library.

She realized that the clothes she wore weren't suitable to go out, even to battle. Her fashion sense had gotten a sharp upgrade since becoming closer friends to Cordelia. She was nowhere close to Cordelia's level, did not even desire to get to that level; but she had to admit she had much more of a care for her appearance now. Cordy's advice made her look **good**.

She put the part of her concerned about what clothes to wear on automatic, and started tossing supplies into her backpack: Holy water, 4 extra stakes, first aid kit, laptop. Her pair of tonfas were already in sheaths sewn to the outside of the pack (making them look like support frames) She placed her belt sheath beside the pack so she wouldn't forget it. The sheath contained her best stake (lovingly crafted by Xander in Wood Shop) shaped to her hand, and collapsible ASP baton of metal. She also placed her Power Coin beside the pack.

She thought more about the Power Coin. It was still active. Or at least enough to glow, she mentally amended. By this time she had stripped off her clothes. She pulled on a sports bra, then a white T-shirt over that. Then her true blue jeans, and last a flannel shirt to top it. She was rolling up the cuffs with the ease of long practice when she realized what she was wearing: It was her "Ranger" clothes from Halloween night! She hadn't worn any of it since that night. She had been mildly and irrationally wary of the clothes before, so it was a surprise to find herself wearing them again. Too late to change now, though.

She grabbed the belt sheath and attached it, and her cellphone, too. She tucked the Power coin into her pocket, then grabbed her backpack and rushed out of the house.

A thought came to her. If her Power Coin was still active, maybe she could still teleport! She concentrated hard for a few seconds trying to remember how the Blue Ranger had done it. Finally, it came to her. She grabbed her "communicator" with her other hand and visualized the Library. She made the necessary effort of will.

Nothing happened.

"Drat!" she thought, both annoyed and relieved. She ran for her new bicycle, leapt aboard, and started pedaling for the Library as quickly as possible.

_Sunnydale High School Library_

It took a lot of talking, and setting some tea on, and then three cups apiece to each of the shaken men before anything more than terrified ramblings came out of either of them. Finally, with the zombie whatever it was, slowly pacing in its cage, and both Englishmen, which was realized after seeing they both wore tweed, with their tea, Buffy began to question her Watcher and the visiting one.

"All right Giles, it's spill-time," Buffy demanded, setting her fists on the table before Giles, glaring down at her Watcher. "First off, why did you go totally spastic over seeing the zombie-bitch over there and then who is this guy, who just happens to be wearing tweed and when he screams he has an English accent?"

Giles looked up almost guiltily into his Slayer's eyes, and then quickly went back down to his tea, taking another sip. Ignoring his Slayer for the moment, Giles turned to the man sitting across from him.

"Phillip, what the bloody hell are you doing here!" he demanded, sounding decidedly un-Giles-like.

Phillip frowned and turned to face Rupert. "It's back Rupert," was all he said, sounding like he was talking about the End of the World or something worse, "It's back."

"Yes, I could see that the moment Deirdre was thrown in here as a walking corpse!" Giles shouted.

Buffy had enough of being ignored and she slammed her hands down on the table, a loud echoing slap resounding throughout the Library. "ENOUGH!" she shouted even louder.

"Giles, talk to me," she begged. "Tell me what's going on. What's with Zombie lady and this Phillip guy?"

Giles finally seemed to notice that he and his old college friend were not the only ones in the room and for a moment it looked like he was bracing himself, and then it was like he closed up tighter than a clam shell. "Please forgive me, everyone this is Phillip Henry, an . . . an old friend from college. We haven't seen each other for nearly twenty years."

"And I wish it could have been twenty more," Phillip said sourly, drinking the last of his tea, "but when . . . when I'd heard about Thomas . . ." he trailed off.

"Thomas? What happened with . . ." Giles tried to ask, but one look at the zombie creature in the cage seemed to be answer enough for him.

"G-man, enough with the cryptic introduction bull," Xander interrupted, stepping forward.

"Yeah, what's the deal here? I mean like so we got a dead lady that's trying to kill both of you tweed guys . . . oh! Hey, is this like some kinda vengeance thing against Watchers?" Cordelia asked.

Phillip closed up just as Giles had, but Giles seemed more irked now that Cordelia had added her two cents. After all, everyone, even the girl herself, agreed that the cheerleader could aggravate and annoy even the most level-headed and calm person in the world. Xander phrased it best as saying "She could get Gandhi to contemplate murder."

"Willow is on her way over, something happened," Giles tried to change the subject, but Buffy would have none of that.

"Fine, we'll deal with that when she gets here, but for right now were going to talk about the zombie that is . . ." Buffy didn't get to finish her statement as said zombie finally succeeded in kicking open the cage and ran full tilt for the group at the table. Oz and Xander tried to get in its way to stop it, but the corpse only flung them aside like they weren't even there. Cordelia tried to trip it with a sweep kick, but the thing was too tough, and expecting her.

Before Buffy was prepared for it, the thing that had once been Deirdre Page knocked the Slayer aside and slipped her hands around Phillip's throat and with far too much ease for a dead person, snapped the ex-Watcher's neck. Expecting it to turn on them next, the Rangers pulled Giles out of the line of fire and prepared their weapons, setting up a perimeter around the thing. What they didn't expect was for it to make some choking sounds, and then to just fall down dead right next to Phillip's corpse and then turn into a puddle of blue jelly.

"OK, that was kinda anti-climatic," Oz commented.

_To Be Continued...?_


	75. YAHF: Honest Man's Opinion

Title: Halloween: An Honest Man's Opinion

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: BtVS is Joss Whedon's property. Seth Grahame-Smith wrote the novel that inspired the move 'Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter'. And while there are quite a few differences between the vampire races of the novel/movie and BtVS/Angel verse, it really only makes since that Abraham Lincoln be a Vampire Hunter in the Buffyverse. I'm also partial to George Washington and the Founding Fathers being demon slayers in their own rights. Heck, in the 'supernatural' universe of various fictional works, why couldn't Benjamin Franklin been a time traveling wizard/scientist? I'm just saying. Anyway, no money do I earn from this, so don't bother suing. Also, well-versed in Lincoln History, I am not, nor am I all that eloquent. I have seen the movie though.

Summary: YAHF What if the _costume_ remembered the events of that fateful night in Sunnydale? What if that costume weren't from another 'fictional' universe, but a genuine historical figure? What if that person wrote down the events of that night and left them for someone that would live long enough to do something about it?

_November 1st, 1863_

_Last night was All Hallows Eave as the calendar records such things. Before the war, and I sincerely hope after it as well, families would celebrate the harvest and tell each other ghost stories and send their children about to gather sweets while giving away their own to their neighbor's children. Though some traditions change with time, family holidays should always remain sacred._

_I had a nightmare last night._

_Perhaps it was only that, a dream, to be forgotten amidst the memories of daily reality. Something in me says that it was no a mere figment of imaginings. It was real. It really did happen. Whether that makes me a madman for believing it, or a seer of old writing prophecy for future generations, I know not._

_What I do know, however, is that there is a young man, a young woman, and a chosen champion of God. And they fight the good fight. They continue where I left off in fighting the forces of darkness. They live—or rather they will live in a settlement far to the West in the state of California, in a city she called Sunnydale._

_His name is Alexander Lavelle Harris. Her name is Willow Danielle Rosenberg. And the champion..._

_**BUFFY ANNE SUMMERS**_

_I have never heard the like and I doubt I ever will. To look at her, you would not thing that she was any different than my dear Mary. Yet I saw in her a strength that few men have ever had._

_I digress._

_My dream began in the middle of a road, at night, with creatures of Hell itself running rampant all around . . ._

AN: Basically a 'What If' the personality of the costume actually remembered what happened after they stopped possessing the gang. In this case, obviously, Xander dresses up as a Vampire Hunting Abraham Lincoln, or to be detail-specific about it, he dressed up Abraham Lincoln and grabbed one of Giles' silver-tipped axes, saying he was going to chop down a cherry tree or something to all who asked. No decisions on what, if different at all, Buffy and Willow dressed as, but needless to say they 'impressed' the President. If this were to actually be continued beyond this brief excerpt of a diary entry from Lincoln's "Hunting Journal", I might consider 'changing history' so that Henry Sturges shows up the day after Halloween in Sunnydale and sets the Slayer up with some care packages the President left for them. But I'm not!


	76. First Aspect: Chaos

Title: _First Aspect_: **Chaos**

Author: Joshua

Summary: Response to TTH Challenge 7365 A variation on the "YAHF, going as a group or theme" challenges, this time the theme is old/ancient deities either historical, like the Greek, Egyptian or Norse, or from for instance the D&D or DragonLance series of books. ( Challenge-7365/YAHF+on+a+Theme+Divine+ )

Disclaimer: I do not own BtVS or any characters, and I did my best not to quote or give spoilers from the Season 2 episode, "Halloween". Aphrodite is mostly based off the character from the Hercules and Xena TV series. Amaterasu is mostly based off of the bits of myth that have been put into the Naruto manga and anime series. Mars is based off the mythical figure, all facts, such as they are, were acquired from the Wikipedia article. Cordelia dressing as Bast is straight from Dragonhulk's story "Inheritance: A Halloween Story", but the consequences for her are entirely of my own imagining.

Author's Note: This story is marked as COMPLETE. If I get more than 100 reviews from it, only then will I write any sort of sequel/part two of it. I actually kind of hope that I do, because I have some fun/funny ideas about what all powers Buffy gets from her new patron. Here's a small hint, consider it an incentive for writing reviews; Remember Spike once saying that "They say Slayer's blood is an aphrodisiac"? Well, now that's truer than ever. Even on non-vampires, if so much as a drop of her blood comes in contact with their skin, let alone into their system via other means, that person will be overcome with a haze of lust that won't let up until they pass out from orgasm overload. That's just one of the ideas I've gotten for just one of them.

Story:

Buffy Summers was feeling depressed. Not to say she was actually depressed, as that would involve all sorts of badness that would make her already complicated teenaged life even more despondent than it already was. Last night she'd had a date with Angel, the mysterious vampire with a soul that she'd been dancing around in this sort of forbidden romance thing. Only she'd come across some vamps vandalizing local Halloween decorations on her way to said date and by the time she'd finished that and hurried to the Bronze... Cordelia 'Queen C' Chase was there sitting with him, having a great time by all appearances.

The next day, she practically was shoving it in her face that she was a better date for Angel than Buffy ever would be. Willow, best friend forever that she is, tried to point out that Angel was a vampire, not just some older college guy like Cordelia apparently thought he was, but of course Queen C wouldn't believe a word that Wallflower Rosenberg would ever say to her. Willow had then suggested going to get the Watcher's Diary on Angel, see if they could get any insights into the man's, or vampire's past.

That had not gone very well, Giles caught them with it before they could so much as sneak it out of his office. And then there was the thing with Snyder.

They'd been walking to their lockers to change out their books for class, Buffy, Willow and their best guy friend, Xander. She'd just been explaining the deal with Angel when Snyder suddenly appeared right behind her.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite juvenile delinquent," he snarled.

"Principal Snyder!" Buffy jumped. Yes, she was the Slayer, the boogeyman to all the vampires, demons and monsters in the world, and she jumped when a bald man actually shorter than her snuck up behind her.

"I'm sure your plans for Halloween are quite interesting," he spoke down to her, while staring her in the eye. "Keying cars, egging doors, TP-ing houses; one cry for help after the other. Well I'm here to answer those cries of help, by allowing you to volunteer for the Halloween Safety League." He then handed her the clipboard and a pen. Neither his tone nor the expression on his face broke argument.

Whimpering, Buffy succumbed to the inevitable and signed her name to escort elementary kids around on Halloween Night. While she was doing that, Snyder handed two extra pens to Willow and Xander on either side of her. Once all three had signed up, Snyder sneered, though it could have been a smirk, at them and added, "Costumes are mandatory. Nothing inappropriate, and for mercy's sake, make it respectable!"

Turning away from Snyder's presence, the three made their way to the lounge area.

"Great," Buffy grumbled. "Just when I thought I had the night off!"

"What? For reals? I'd have thought Halloween would be all about big and scary and world ending stuff?" Xander asked as they sat down at a table.

"Nope," the Slayer replied with a shrug. "According to Giles, Halloween is like dead for the undead."

"That's why I love those vamps, they keep you guessing!" Xander sarcastically remarked.

"What are we going to do about costumes though?" Willow asked, ever the practical one. "Me and Buffy were planning on staying in and having a slumber party, so we don't have costumes on hand."

"I was actually planning on going as a hobo, but Snyder's little after comment kind of nix that idea," said Xander. Neither of the girls could tell if he was joking. "I've got these old fatigues in the garage. I suppose I could go as a soldier if I can get some kind of toy gun or something."

"Meh," Buffy frowned. "I've always thought of Halloween as opportunity to dress up as someone or something that _isn't_ you. Chance to be who you want or wish you could be instead of... what you are. I may not be military, but I'm kind of already a soldier. Count me out of that."

Frowning himself, Xander began to consider what alternatives. Then he spotted the vending machine and decided he always did his best thinking on a full stomach. Getting up and reaching for spare change, he left them with the comment, "Well other than you as a bad guy, I'm not sure what your options are there, Buff. If it weren't such a sexist and demeaning thing to say," both girls rolled their eyes at the sarcastic tone of his voice, "I would advise you to embrace the concept of being a lover, not a fighter."

Buffy's eyes actually lit up at that. It was actually exactly what she wanted. But what kind of costume, besides the gutter-bred obvious, could she dress up as to embrace something like that?

Xander put in his coinage and made his selection, and in the everlasting luck of the Hellmouth, the machine stopped working the moment it would have dispensed his selection. Right at that moment, Larry, well known jock in Cordelia's clique of 'people', sauntered up and slammed the machine solidly, jarring it loose.

"You just have to know how to deal with it, Harris," Larry smirked, grabbing the prize before Xander could.

"Give it to me, Larry. I paid for it, and therefore by the laws of this country and capitalism, that makes it mine," said Xander, standing up to the bully.

Rather than reply with words, Larry just reached out, grabbed Xander by the front of his collar and slammed him up against the vending machine. "What did you say to me?" he growled.

Before anything else could happen, a blond blur grabbed Larry, pulled him away from Xander, and then slammed him even harder into the next machine over. Without anyone having even put in any money or making a selection, another item fell out of it.

Whispering into Larry's ear like the angel of death, while wrenching his arm back far enough to hurt without injury, she said, "I ever catch you stealing from my friend again, you can watch that scholarship go up in so much smoke. Get out of here!" She then practically threw him away, and for just a brief moment his feet did leave the ground, but he managed to catch himself and was soon running away.

Looking down, Buffy saw the unexpected treasure and her face lit up. "Ooh! Treats!"

"You didn't have to do that," Xander grumpily remarked as she reached down to grab it.

"No big," she shrugged. "You had a good idea before Xander. The whole lover, not a fighter thing."

"Yeah, well," he said under his breath while she walked away, "I'm starting to want to go the other way around."

_Later That Afternoon_

Ethan's was the new seasonal costume shop that had opened up on Main Street in 'downtown' Sunnydale. Judging from the number of kids and parents swarming its racks, it was also the cheapest option in town. The only other choice for getting costumes was Partytown in the Mall, and they tended to run prices upwards of a hundred dollars, for their _used_ and _cheap_ stuff!

Given the limits of middle class allowances to their teenage children, and said teenage children not exactly having a lot of restraint in their spending habits, Buffy, Willow and Xander decided to try their luck at Ethan's before resorting to their last resort of scrounging around for what they could put together at home. Each had some idea of what they wanted to dress as going in, but only one knew, while the other two were toying around with concepts.

Willow, of course, immediately went to the pre-packaged costume selections and found a cheap enough ghost costume in her size. Buffy, on the other hand, was focusing on Xander's earlier comment to her. A lover, not a fighter. She passed by a velvet pink/red noblewoman's dress, not giving it a second glance. Since she hadn't gotten a look at Angel's Watcher Diary, she had not seen the illustration of Darla, the vampire who turned him, depicted as a beautiful noblewoman on one of the pages. Instead, she was focused entirely on the concept of being a lover. Finally, after three complete circuits of the shop, she came across exactly what she was looking for.

It was hidden away in the back corner of the pre-packaged costume section. The model/picture on the front proclaimed it to be a costume of Aphrodite, Greek Goddess of Love. It showed a gorgeous, tall, blond woman in a white Greek style toga that had a long slit up the sides, revealing plenty of leg, and a plunging neckline, with a bunch of gold accessories here and there. It was perfect!

Xander, of the three, was having the most trouble. He was glad Buffy appreciated his casual advice to her, heck he was glad if she so much as looked in his direction with a smile on her face! But ever since the Larry incident, he'd been mulling over the flip side of his advice. Buffy may not want to be a fighter, but _he_ did!

Sure, he'd love it if he could actually get Buffy to fall in love with him the way he'd fallen for her, but lets be honest here! That was not going to happen, and if it did, not any time soon! So until it did, he'd rather at least help out in ways besides just research and donut duty. Then Buffy had gone and saved him, proving once and for all that he couldn't even take care of himself against normal human bullies, let alone the demonic kind!

Buffy's words from before struck a chord in his mind; Halloween was about pretending for just one night that you were somebody else, somebody you _wanted_ to be, somebody not you!

Xander wanted to be a fighter, even if only pretend, and even if only for one night. And not just any fighter, the ultimate fighter. He started in the superhero section, but all that was left was for kids, and what was left in the adult sizes were not the heroes he wanted to be. Moving on, he found some empty racks and torn, empty, packages that said something about an Ares costume, probably the one from the Xena and Hercules TV shows. No Ares costumes left, but that did give him an idea. Looking around for a bit, he found a cheap Roman Centurion costume in his size and grabbed it before anybody else could. Then he went to the bargain bin and found what he was looking for on the first try, an old looking 'medallion' that had a wolf on one side and a bird, could be a woodpecker, on the other. For the last part, he had an idea, but he'd have to fashion it at home later. If nothing else, he remembered the main difference between Ares, Greek God of War, and Mars, Roman God of War, was that the primary symbol for Mars was his spear, while Ares was better known for his sword. At least that's what the TV shows conveyed to its audience.

"So what did you guys get?" Willow asked as she joined her friends when they came to check out.

They both held up their respective choices, eyebrows raised at the similarity between the two.

"I'm dressing up as Aphrodite, goddess of love, if you must know," said Buffy.

"And I'm going as Mars, Roman god of war," said Xander, stressing the origin of his costume choice.

"You're both going as gods?" asked Willow, her mood dropping a bit at the intimidation factor.

"Well, like Xander said, I'd rather be a lover, not a fighter," Buffy defended her choice. "And you can't really get much better than the most well known _goddess_ of love, right?"

At the looks he received from his friends, Xander stared back and said to them, "Like Buffy said, Halloween is dressing up as someone you're not. And I think we all saw earlier today that I'm not much of a fighter. Can't get much better a fighter than a god of war, can you? Besides, all the Ares costumes are already taken."

"But I only got a ghost costume!" Willow whined.

They both blinked and stared at her, before exchanging a look.

"Willow," Buffy said as gently as she could. "You know what we've been saying, we're dressing up as something that we're not, something—someone that we'd rather be? Well, you as a ghost..." She looked to Xander for help.

"You can't dress up as a ghost Wills, because you already are one," he supplied helpfully.

"Xander!" Buffy hissed, slapping him across the arm.

"Ow! Slayer strength! And that's not what I meant!" Turning to his longest time friend, he spoke. "Wills, you know your status online, you know, as a hacker? And when at school, you don't try and stand out, if anything you always try and hide and pass through without being touched. Not to mention, you haunt the library even more than Giles does. Come on Wills! Live a little! Let the imagination run wild! Maybe dress up like some kind of Amazon goddess, like Artemis or, oh! Hera, queen of the gods! Not Athena, you're already smarter than her."

"Really? You think?" Willow looked uncertain, but hopeful.

"Yes," Buffy agreed before any negative thoughts could influence her friend the other way. To make sure, she even snatched the ghost costume from the redhead's hands and pulled her back into the main shop. "If you're going to do something outrageous, go all the way, go big, go divine even!"

"Divine! Rosenberg? Ha!" a derisive voice came from behind them.

"What do you want, Cordelia?" Xander snapped at the unexpected eavesdropper.

"Well, if you must know, I was looking into what you three were into," she replied with hardly a care. "With what I know about you, I've figured that any time I have big plans, your freakishness always has ways of messing with me and mine. So, seeing you lot all buddy-buddy and coming here like you're on a mission, or a shopping spree, I figured it had something to do with vampires or whatever. Well?"

"Well what?" Buffy replied, trying to keep up with the brunette's sudden change of topic.

Rolling her eyes, she let out a suffering sigh before asking, "Is there anything going on? During Halloween, I mean? I'm going to this party, and I don't want it all to be ruined because the world needs saving or something."

"Uh, no," Buffy answered slowly, like she was speaking to a rabid animal. "Giles actually says that nothing is going on. The vampires and everything stay in on Halloween. Don't know why, they just do."

"Oh, good," Cordelia smiled that thousand watt smile of hers. "Now what is this about Willow being divine?"

"We're dressing up as gods," Xander answered before the other two could.

"Gods, huh?" the brunette looked thoughtful for a moment, before striking like a snake and snatching a veil and some fake gold Egyptian looking jewelry. "Later losers!"

"So, a goddess, huh?" Willow said to her friends, no longer sounding uncertain. In fact she now sounded quite certain about her next course of action. "Oh! Idea!" she moved over to the anime section. "I can go as Amaterasu!"

"Who?" Xander said.

"Gesundheit?" Buffy said at the same time.

Smiling, Willow explained. "Amaterasu is the Japanese goddess of the Sun!"

A few minutes later, gathering a wig here, a flowing kimono dress there, and some fancy looking bracelets and other specific jewelry, they were back in line to check out and taking their purchases home.

_Halloween Night_

Janus had a lot of bartering to do in order to pull this off. Sure, it was a god, and sure, it was worshiped across multiple pantheons by thousands of beings, most of them not even human. It was also neither male nor female while being both at the same time, so 'it' was the proper identifier. It also only had one chance to succeed in creating maximum chaos and the Fates, for once, were on its side. To it, this was a glorious prank and a nice way of riling things up on the Hellmouth during the one night of the year things were supposed to be quiet in that part of the world.

To the Fates however, equally worshiped across multiple pantheons in multiple forms, this was an opportunity. The Forces of Balance had done their job a little too well. The way things were going now, neither good nor evil would make any progress for the next decade, just a continuous back and forth that would cause more problems than solutions, let alone peace. Not to mention there was a 'Reboot World' that, as of current stats, would wind up becoming an Abandoned World, forcing all involved to abandon both this world, the new world, and exist in limbo while another world was constructed out of the Nothing for them. From a mortal perspective, all the gods of the world were planning, long-term, on moving to the new world when their lease on this world ran out, but the way things were going, both would be demolished before any moving could be done, forcing all the gods of both worlds to 'live on the streets' as their lease on this world would still run out.

Janus's prank on the Hellmouth presented the Fates with an opportunity. An opportunity to condition, to prime those directly responsible for the creation of the Reboot World so that it would not be Abandoned, and in fact made even more accessible for all the gods of this world.

Five gods were approached. One gave His approval. The other four made their conditions and then agreed.

When the spell was cast and all the people bearing the Mark of Janus on their costumes turned into said costumes, four in particular were changed in ways the others were not. Because those four, dressed as the gods Aphrodite, Amaterasu, Bast, and Mars did more than just _think_ they became gods with some extra powers, they became the mortal avatars of those gods as said gods actually allowed the spell to draw _all of their power and divinity_ and pour it all into the frail, weak bodies of the four mortals.

Such a change, no matter how temporary, could not occur without consequences. Mortal bodies were not designed to handle that kind of power, no matter the magic involved. The bartering was so each individual god could control exactly what those consequences were.

The first, most typical consequence, of course, was that the mortal bodies blow up. That was something the Fates immediately negated. They also put a limit as to how much power the mortals could possess after the spell had run its course. Other than that, and playing referee between Janus and the other four gods, they let each have free reign as to what was done with their respective avatar.

After Halloween was over, however, there was one other rule the Fates put in place. The four gods could never again possess their mortal avatars—**UNLESS—**unless the mortals themselves approached their respective gods, proved themselves worthy through a number of pre-chosen challenges, and even then there would be limits and restrictions on when, how and what for. In the case of the gods, going around on Earth in human bodies while still possessing their full power was like being given a card with unlimited credit and told to go crazy in the biggest shopping center in the universe. In the case of the mortals, well the phrase 'power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely' is a warning that doesn't get ignored when it comes to "the power of a god".

Therefore, if the mortals invited the opportunity to be possessed by their respective god yet again, and if the god felt like it when invited, then they couldn't just channel the power of a god willy-nilly. Rule one of the avatar; if the mortal can handle it on their own without dying, no matter how difficult or how long it takes them, no helping. Rule two, if they're going to die no matter what they do, then and only then can the god take over and intervene. Addendum, if other divine or demonic forces are interfering with said avatar, then even if there's no danger of dying, interference and intervening is allowed, but only within the same limitations of the initial interference.

But all that is for later. In the meantime, there are four gods walking the Earth.

_Earth, North America, California, Sunnydale_

Aphrodite shook her head, her wavy blond locks falling from where they'd been pinned in place in rolling waves. It was... different, being inside a mortal body instead of crafting her own out of her own essence whenever she wanted to appear as a human. For starters, when she did it on her own, it was like sticking her hand inside of a puppet. Or more like her pinky finger. It was the same for all the gods, it was also why they became so... imaginative when crafting their forms and communicating with mortals and other lesser races. It was all just one big puppet show.

But being _inside_ of a mortal body...

The difference was comparable to dipping a pinky finger into the pool, and jumping in all at once. Looking down at her temporary—in more ways than one—body Aphrodite examined what she had to work with. Seeing more than just the physical, the love goddess sighed but still smiled.

"Well, not a total loss," she said to herself. "Going to have to get rid of that demonic taint, Slayer essence is more trouble that it was ever worth. The Power of Love is so much better, I think. Hm, nice body, petite, a little on the short side, but body type fits together rather nicely. Love the hair. Ugh, this outfit though, lame-oh! Is this seriously how people see me in this age? I'm way sexier and not as drab. And white robes? Seriously? Well, let's see what we can do to fix this."

With that said, Aphrodite snapped her fingers and her form was covered with gold sparks and shining pink light as the sound of bells rung through the air. Once the effects of godly power had passed, they revealed the same blond body of Buffy Summers, though changed somewhat. For starters, it appeared as though she had been through the complete and total spa treatment of the most expensive spa in the world, if not the universe. Her hair fell around her shoulders in soft golden curls, her face was made up to enhance her natural features and reflect that all of a sudden there were no flaws to cover up in the first place. She was also wearing what most would equate with rather elaborate lingerie; form-fitting lace briefs, a tight strapless demi-cup basque equal parts lace and satin, on her feet a pair of impossible gold stiletto sandals with gold chain straps spiraling up both her calves, and over all of it a single 'strap' transparent robe, leaving her arms and one shoulder completely bare, all of it in shades of pink and red.

"Better," she said aloud in a self-satisfied tone, "Much better."

"Now," Aphrodite finally turned her attention beyond herself, "Let's see what there is to do until dawn."

Amaterasu ruthlessly took possession of the one that had taken her form. The transformation was instantaneous and completed in a flash of black flames, turning the shy young red haired girl wearing a wig and costume, into a tall strong white-haired-with-red-streaks warrior woman, a form more worthy of the Daughter of Izanagi.

Right in front of her, one of the minor demons possessing the human child attacked the decaying human woman that offered treats to it. That would not stand. With no true effort, Amaterasu freed the decayed human and sealed her house from evil and banished the demons from her presence with the same move. When the demons, in their ignorance, rose to challenge her, she merely glared at them with her right eye. And when it came to gods, the phrase 'if looks could kill' often took on a more than literal meaning.

"_Sinei_!" she hissed at the demons. Die, she told them.

The demons burned in the black flames of her true _Fire_, but recalling the Rules the Fates limited her with, she made sure to control it just enough so _only_ the demons burned, leaving the human children unharmed in her wake. Sensing further demonic taint, as well as sensing the presence of the Hellmouth in the distance, Amaterasu snarled. This would not stand.

The black flames soon swept throughout the whole of Sunnydale, leaving behind untainted humans and their property, and untainted animals as well, but not much else.

Mars opened his eyes and smiled. It had been nearly two thousand years, give or take a century, since he'd last set foot on Earth. It was good to be back. He planned on having quite a bit of fun. First things first, putting an end once and for all to this luke warm 'never ending' war between the forces of "Good" and "Evil". By quite simply turning it from a Cold War into a very active war. In this much, Mars agreed with Janus, chaos was by and far better to what those damned Forces of Balance were struggling to maintain.

And what better way to start a war than a decisive first strike?

As Amaterasu's flames burned everything demonic and 'tainted' from the whole of Sunnydale, Mars raised his spear and made his own strike. The spear flew through the night air, straight and true, arching perfectly to strike exactly where he'd aimed it.

In the Sunnydale High Library, Rupert Giles was enjoying his night off by sorting the card catalog. It all came to a crashing halt, literally, when a Roman spear came falling through the skylight, destroyed the long table at the center of the room, and then blasted a hole through the floor. After the dust settled, from what he could see the hole went down about a mile or more. Then there was a flash of light and the roar of an explosion and without being able to say how, Giles _knew_ that the Hellmouth no longer existed.

Mars grinned as he felt the Hellmouth close and his spear reappeared in his hand. Turning to the East, he casually backhanded the vampire sneaking up on him and took aim. If he was going to close all the Hellmouths on this plane of existence before dawn, he couldn't afford distractions. A solid throw and a few seconds later, the Cleveland Hellmouth, minor though it was, was destroyed and spear back in hand, being readied for the next one.

Bast yawned as she stretched out on top of the car Cordelia had been making out with her boyfriend in when the change occurred. Needless to say, the Egyptian Cat Goddess didn't appreciate being mauled at by a human dressed up like Jojo the dog boy, especially not when a chaos demon transformed said human into some kind of werewolf like monster. Bast casually destroyed the demon, changing the human back, and then transformed him into something more... worthy. A werelion as a matter of fact. She then proceeded with having her way with her creation until she bored of him and wandered around for a bit.

She'd gone back into the party, found one or two other transformed costume goers causing problems, changed them back, and then turned every woman present into a catgirl, and every man into a werelion. They were now all participating in the post orgy afterglow, while she stretched out above them.

Bast decided to take a nap, and curled up to do just that.

Aphrodite stared in disbelief as the other three gods did more chaos and caused more trouble in the first five minutes of their presence on Earth, than what all Janus had planned and would have done—could have done even if the spell had been left to run for an entire year and the effects made permanent! She knew that the Fates wanted to get the planet out of the gutter it had been driving headlong into, but she doubted that they wanted her and her fellow gods to raze the road and side-swipe everything on it from ant to tank!

She may not have been one of the Three, nor able to see the future, and she certainly didn't have any kind of Oracle like her brother Apollo or sister Athena invested in. But she could see just fine the consequences of what had been done already!

For starters, Rasu's little tantrum? It wiped out _every_ demon and vampire on or around the Hellmouth. And not just that, but any human that had more than a little bit of supernatural or demonic taint would either be destroyed, or just as bad, spiritually lobotomized!

Every witch, wizard, or magic potential on the Hellmouth? No longer able to so much as light a candle with magic, let alone a protection spell or any kind of spell at all!

Angel, her avatar's love interest? Gone. Though she'd managed to snag his soul before it had gone back to Hell, saving him from that at least.

Spike and Drusilla? Gone. Though she was tempted as the two _were_ in love with each other, strange as it was. Oh well, at least they were together in Hell now.

The Mayor? Gone. Yes, he'd still been mostly human, but there was enough supernatural taint that he was destroyed just the same. And when the Mayor died, so did most of his flunkies, even those not within range of Amaterasu's fire.

What was left was human, animal, or protected by the four gods walking the streets. That would have consequences, long term consequences, the love goddess was sure.

Mars, hunk that he was, was all about the strategy, and his strategy involved finally starting the war that had been bubbling since humanity was put on this planet. He at least probably knew what he was doing, but his small scale tactical view was blinded by his big picture strategic view and she knew he would get a chewing out after this was all over. Similar as he was to her ex-lover Ares, he was probably looking forward to it.

The real troublemaker though was Bast. She was neither good nor evil, but something worse. She was a cat. While Aphrodite had nothing against the animals, nor the totem, she knew enough about them to know that remaking a race of half-human half-felines was probably a mistake and would lead to persecution of the changed people, and eventually that would piss Bast and other interested parties off, leading to retribution.

She needed to do something to mollify what the other three had done already.

Hah! Now that was a twist. Usually it was others trying to fix pranks and selfish things she had done!

Now, first things first, start by reinforcing the love between friends that already exists in their avatars. Simple enough, just a bit of lust to tweak things around and then twisting the feelings away from selfish desires towards a single figure. Succubae did the same thing with their thralls all the time. Only here everyone would still have their free will of course.

Next up, the loss of all the tainted humans would definitely be noticed, so Aphrodite just made it even more devastating. Part of love is loss and it is as easy to tweak feelings of loss as it is lust or infatuation. This would make it seem to the whole world like some disaster had swept through the town, whether it be natural or man-made, Aphrodite decided to leave up to the humans themselves. Regardless, while those lost would be remembered, the exact circumstances would be forgotten sooner rather than later. Grief, while devastating, is not something humans like to wallow in. Just to get past the increased loss Aphrodite had given them, they would strive to forget it and move past it that much sooner.

As for the war... well, OK, she'd gave to come back to that.

The cat people, well, that she could do something about. She just used her influence as the goddess of LOVE to make sure all of humanity now *loved* the idea of cat people, especially cat girls. After that, all she could do was hope for the best.

She then went and did something she'd been intending to do from the start, as in the start of the planet and the existence of the so called Vampire Slayer. And now that she had at least a little leverage on more than a few gods and goddesses to back her play, she did so with no hesitation.

Reaching out, mostly by teleporting herself away from Sunnydale to the island nation of Jamaica, Aphrodite tore out the Slayer essence and Slayer Spirit from the active Slayer and the rest of humanity (descendants of Sinea, the first slayer) and replaced it with the exact same powers, but made the source of said powers her source. Which is to say, the power of love. She may also have included a few... extras, but the same strength, speed, healing, and dream powers stayed mostly the same.

As for Buffy, well she got the same deal, but as her avatar she included a lot more of the... extras than she did for every Slayer that would come in the future. Come to think of it, she didn't like that name, 'slayer', it brings to mind all kinds of icky killing stuff. Hm... 'Protector' sounds so much better, more romantic too.

Having taken care of that, as well as cleanup duty, Aphrodite went to enjoy herself.

"Now," she said, holding up the soul of one Liam Booth, aka Angel, "How to spend the time till morning, and what do I do with you?"

_After The Dawn_

Buffy blinked her eyes awake as the morning sun hit her face. She wasn't quite sure what had happened or where she was, but something had changed. She felt... different. That was the only word for it.

She was in a bed—not her bed though—and she was not alone in that bed. She was, thankfully, wearing clothing. Sitting up, she looked down at herself and frowned. Not that she was going to complain, but she knew for a fact that she did not own any lingerie even remotely close to as high-end as what she was wearing, and the toga negligee she wore over it felt and looked like it was just as expensive. Now that that was out of the way, Buffy turned to see who was sharing her... or was it she who was sharing theirs?... bed.

On one side of her, lay Angel. _He_ was the naked one though, but he was also turned away from her, so she didn't get any sneak previews or anything. He also wasn't touching her, and touching was how Buffy knew she wasn't alone. Turning to the other side, she saw... OK, wow. If she wasn't already in love with Angel and sure, _very sure_, of her feelings, she might be tempted to say she was in love with either one of the two gorgeous hunks that were spooning her. Thankfully for her sanity, they weren't spooning each other, one was wrapped around her top half, while the other was curled up down at her feet.

She sniffed the air, pleased to note that it didn't smell anything like what she'd feared; sweat and sex. Instead it smelled like... cats?

The two gorgeous hunks and Angel all woke at the same time. They turned to face her and opened their eyes. Their slit _cat_ eyes!

"Oh boy," Buffy gulped and sat back from the three werelions. The other two, both blonds, she would later find out were named Riley and Fred.

Willow awoke from the trance she'd been in... that Amaterasu had been in. Unlike what Xander had described the time he'd been possessed, unable to remember anything at all, Willow remembered everything. _Everything_!

What's more, Amaterasu had spent the latter half of the night communing with Willow.

That is the only word for it; communing. Though Amaterasu had been in control of the body and the one meditating to speak with a disembodied spirit, it was still a goddess conversing with a mortal, hence communing.

At first, Willow couldn't even comprehend what was happening. Then the fiery sun goddess started to explain things. It was part preaching, part teaching, but not a conversation of friends let alone anything more intimate than that! Eventually, as the lecture/message continued, Willow began to comprehend what had happened, what was happening, and even some of what would happen. Amaterasu noticed this and was—impressed was too strong a word for it—less annoyed by her after that.

When Willow finally asked her first question, well at that point it would be fair to say that the Japanese goddess was impressed, not by the fact she asked but by the validity of the question itself, hinting at a greater understanding than any normal mortal should possess. Upon receiving an answer to her question instead of flaming rebukes, Willow asked another one, this time eliciting a response of mild satisfaction. The same one might feel for having a puppy finally perform the trick you were teaching it properly.

They spent every last remaining moment of time between then and the approaching dawn, preparing, testing and answering Willow for her new role as the avatar of Amaterasu on the Earth. Part of the goddess's powers was to make every passing moment feel like the equivalent of three full days, and with over twelve hours to work on it, well... that was a lot of time. But then, they still had a lot to do.

Now, the dawn had come and with it Amaterasu had left her.

Willow pulled the long white haired wig off her head, revealing to the world that her natural red hair had grown to match the wig's length, and where the wig was mostly white with red streaks, her red hair now had pure white streaks in the same pattern.

Standing to her feet, Willow looked down at the little hamlet called Sunnydale from where she stood on Kingman's Bluff. It was no longer the home of demons and vampires, no longer contained the Hellmouth beneath it. It was just another human village. Closing her eyes, Willow took a deep breath and faced the rising sun in the East.

"My lady," Willow bowed towards the sun. As she rose, she opened her eyes and then teleported back to her home, vanishing from the bluff in a flash of black fire.

The god of war had turned Xander Lavelle Harris into a Super Soldier. As in Captain America. As in what the Slayer, now Protector, was. As in super strength, agility, reflexes normally found only in a Special Ops soldier, and endurance to run a 72 hour marathon before completing a series of missions in hostile terrains against heavy opposition and then completing Hell Week from BUD/s SEAL Training, all on just fifteen minutes of sleep! As in completely superhuman.

Oh, and he woke up knowing that if any were around, he could control both natural wolves (and dogs), as well as any supernatural deviation of them, not to mention werewolves. Like complete control. Like they become loyal obedient Police/Guide/Trained dogs instead of the wild animals they are.

Then there was how he'd woken up. Mars apparently liked to fight. He _really_ liked to fight. So when dawn came and went, Xander found himself coming to in the middle of a bar brawl. A bar brawl where he'd been beating on his father. ER doctors said he was in a coma and it didn't look like he'd be coming out of it any time soon.

"So, explain to me again, why am I not under arrest?" Xander said to the detective he was standing in front of. Detective Stein or something like that.

"According to our records," the balding man replied dutifully, "you are untouchable by any legal means. You and your friends have absolute immunity and even if you were to kill men, women, children and the elderly in front of the President of the United States on live International TV, no country in the world could touch you or give you so much as a parking ticket. Sir."

This being the tenth time he's explained the situation, Detective Stein was a bit more blunt than strictly necessary.

"Seriously?" said Xander, disbelieving.

"... Yes, actually. But nobody would like you much if you were to do that," Stein answered honestly.

"..." Xander had nothing to say to that.

"I'm going to go home now... OK?" Xander pointed behind him and started to walk away, keeping a close eye on Stein and the surrounding cops though. Just in case.

"Whatever you say, sir," Stein shrugged it off and turned back to doing his job.

Only when he was out of the building did Xander finally relax enough to stop eyeballing all the police.

"Freaky," he said to himself and started to run home. Which was over twenty-five miles away from the bar he'd been in. It took him 10 minutes.

Cordelia sighed with absolute contentment. She remembered last night like it was some kind of lucid wet dream. Vividly real, all the details as clear as a real memory, but so outrageous that it couldn't be believed.

That is until she woke up, naked, in a pile of equally naked cat people.

"WHAT! THE! HELL!" she screamed, reaching for some kind of cover, only to find none because she and all the cat people were out on the lawn of the university quad!

At once, all the cat people, men with cat eyes and huge muscles, women with cat ears, cat eyes, tails and claws, were awake and looking to Cordelia protectively and reverently all at once. Concerned, she reached up to her head, and was relieved to not feel any kind of cat ears, just her normal human ones on the side of her head. No tail either, and she would need a mirror to check the eyes, but that was for later.

"Is something wrong Mistress?" a familiar voice asked.

Turning, Cordelia couldn't help but blink and do a double take. Sitting, quite contently, on her heels, no concern for her apparent nudity whatsoever, was Harmony Kendall. Her Siamese fur ears and tail twitched restlessly, but otherwise she only had eyes for Cordelia at that moment.

Rather than be rational, or sympathetic to the situation, Cordelia fell back on old instincts and screamed out loud, not distinguishing any one in particular, "Well! Don't just stand there gawking! Get me some damn clothes!"

"Yes Mistress!" the whole group spoke as one and immediately they all ran off, still naked, presumably in search of some clothes for Cordelia. It was only after they'd all left that the brunette realized that _she_ was still naked and now was standing there, alone, in the middle of the university lawn!

"Eep!" she squeaked and ran for the nearest building that would let her hide without too much embarrassment. As she ran, instincts that had never been there before took over and before she knew it, Cordelia had run not inside her target building, but up the side, leaping from ledge to handhold to flagpole to roof the same way she would do a tumble for cheerleading practice.

"Oh great," she grumbled to herself, after realizing what she'd done. "I _knew_ something freaky would happen!"

END.


	77. X Nin: Test

Training Ground 7:

Kakashi was mildly impressed. Considering what he'd gone through the day before, he had actually raised his expectations of these genin-hopefuls accordingly. All three of them had succeeded in hiding their presence, though not the trail they left behind, so he could still find them and sniff them out.

"Oy, Kakashi-sensei!"

The jounin turned around and blinked. How did he...?

"You're a little weird, aren't you?" he commented. Instead of being insulted as he expected, the boy seemed to take it as a compliment.

"Thanks!" Naruto exclaimed. "From a perverted introvert that is chronically late, and spends his free time coming up with lame excuses, who also happens to be one of the elite ninja of Konoha and a potential Future Hokage candidate, that's awesome!"

Kakashi sweat-dropped. Wait a sec... _potential_ Future Hokage candidate? How could an Academy Student, graduated or not, know about _that_?

"That's actually what I wanted to talk to you about sensei," Naruto said, being oddly serious, for him. "Do we really have to go through this whole thing? I mean, you remember what I did with just a couple hours yesterday, and all just because you were late and came in with a lame excuse. I've been out here all night, since only a few minutes after we finished our meeting yesterday. And I've been busy."

Kakashi felt a cold shiver of dread go up and down his spine.

"Now, I'll do whatever you decide on, because honestly, I can get those bells anytime I want to, but that's not the real purpose of this little test, is it?" Naruto asked him.

"You? You can get these bells? These bells here?" he actually pointed at his waist, "Any time you want to? Prove it."

The next thing Kakashi was aware of, Naruto was holding both bells in his hand, as well as his little orange book. How had the little gaki moved so fast?

In point of fact, all Naruto had done was 'freeze' Kakashi's, Sasuke's and Sakura's minds and bodies and taken both bells and book with no resistance whatsoever. To those observing, it looked like one moment he was just standing there, and an eye-blink later he had both bells, the book and was even flipping through it a little.

"I'm afraid, Naruto-san, that proving you're a valuable ninja is only part of the challenge. Now give me that!" he snatched the book out of the genin's hands. Naruto nodded his head, agreeing.

"Yeah, not much to teamwork if only one person is doing all the work. I know, I'm going to wait for them to ask for my help!" he smirked at his 'idea' and crossed his arms and sat down right there on the ground.

"More than likely, they'll probably attack you to get the two bells you already have," Kakashi observed, already flipping back to the page he was last on.

"Wouldn't that automatically fail them?" Naruto asked 'innocently' from where he sat on the ground.

"Yep," Kakashi said.

Meanwhile, in the woods, Naruto was showing the two bells to his teammates and handed one to each. His clone had delivered them while he'd 'frozen' everybody and he was merely keeping the illusion of his clone still holding them in Kakashi's mind, which he could relax now that his clone had "put them in his pocket" so Kakashi just assumed the fact and no longer needed to check it.

"Explain this," Sasuke ordered, holding up the bell. "How did you get it? How is it possible for _you_ to get the best of a jounin when I cannot?"

"Yeah!" Sakura piped in.

"I don't really know how to explain it. No, I mean, I really don't," he said to their incredulous looks. "I don't know the words to describe it. I can like... sense what he's doing and I can change that. And other stuff too. It's pretty easy, when I'm actually doing it, but it's really hard to say it out loud or try and explain it..."

Sasuke scoffed, but he understood what Naruto meant by what he said. You could use all the technical and descriptive words in the world, but sometimes you just couldn't truly know what something was like without doing it yourself first. He grunted at the bell he held and asked Naruto, "Now what?"

"Kakashi-sensei insists the bells aren't enough. We need to prove that we can and will work together, otherwise there's no point to this whole exercise," he said with a shrug.

"But..." Sakura started to protest and proclaim Sasuke could win in spite of Naruto already having the bells, but then her brain kicked into gear and she interpreted from all the clues what had taken Naruto grabbing the answer from their teacher's mind to comprehend. "Oh."

"What?" both boys asked, then glared at each other.

"That's the real test. There's never truly been a two-man-team before. The absolute minimum is three, but by and large, the average number of ninja per team that Konoha has ever deployed has been four. Often more, but rarely less. It's in our history lessons even! Kakashi-sensei got us so focused on not failing and giving us a goal to avoid it, that we never really stopped to think about it. I can't believe I didn't notice it sooner."

"How did you notice it at all?" Naruto asked, amazed that she had deduced it without him telling her directly.

"Well, it's actually fairly obvious, but as I said, Kakashi-sensei made sure we were focused on the competition rather than the goal or the facts," she answered logically.

Even Sasuke was staring at her in amazement. He hadn't seen it at all.

"So... what do we do now?" Naruto voiced all their thoughts of the moment.

"I'm starving," Sakura said after some moments to think it over, "I say send him through the gauntlet," her name for all the traps Naruto had set up and shown them, "and then we eat lunch till he makes his way out."

"Sounds like a good idea to me," Sasuke agreed, eager to get some vengeance for his earlier treatment at the hands of the jounin. "Any ideas on how to get him to do that?"

Naruto scratched/rubbed the side of his temple for a second and then replied, "My clone will take care of it. Come on."

A few minutes later, the three genin stepped out of the woods and made their way over to the the three logs where the clock and the bentos were sitting. Kakashi and Naruto's clone were nowhere in sight.

Right as Naruto handed over the two bentos to his teammates, and pulled out a third for himself of cup ramen, they heard the first in a series of explosions, yells, screams for mercy, and curses of vengeance, interspersed with more explosions.

"Think he's going to be mad?" Sakura asked, worried.

"Nah, if anything, he's more impressed. Especially since some of the traps he's going by, only you two would think of them. Trust me on that," he assured her.

"All right Naruto," Sasuke put down his finished bento, shooting a glare at his new teammate, "Start talking. What happened to you? All through the Academy, you barely passed, you couldn't keep up in taijutsu training, and pranks or not, what you did to Kakashi requires knowledge and experience beyond what you could possibly have. Something happened, and I want to know what."

Naruto shrugged and crumpled up his empty ramen cup. "I really don't know how to explain. Since the night I learned the Kage Bunshin no jutsu... I know stuff. Stuff that I don't know how I know, but I know it. Stuff that other people know, I know. Stuff that even Ino's family couldn't find, I can find."

"Wait... Ino's family," Sakura's overly logical, hyperactive mind caught onto those key words amidst the rambling. "The Yamanaka Clan. Naruto... are you a mind-walker?"

Naruto blinked, the term unfamiliar to him. Not even Ino or her family thought of themselves in those terms, but when he inquired other nearby minds, they immediately pictured the Yamanaka clan, or some member that they knew personally.

Seeing that he didn't understand, Sakura cast about for some kind of explanation that he could comprehend. "Can you... sense, whether seeing or hearing, other people's minds, their thoughts, memories, things like that?" she asked.

'_Yes_' Naruto's voice came through clearer than if he had spoken. Except he hadn't spoken, but they had both heard his voice quite clearly.

"You can control people's minds?" Sasuke asked, in awe.

Naruto shrugged and answered telepathically, '_No. Not in the way you mean, and I can see... sense, what you mean, Teme. I can't _control _your mind, but I can influence. Not as much as you could, and there seems to be some things that I can do in other peoples, and my own mind, that they can't do in their own minds. All I did with Kakashi, and you two was freeze you for a couple seconds, had my clone grab the bells, bring them to me and then he went back to where he stood. Kakashi-sensei never noticed the missing time._'

The alarm, in fact, had rung some time ago, before they'd even come out for lunch, and it was true, neither Sasuke nor Sakura had noticed until Naruto pointed it out to them.

"You're not using a jutsu..." Sakura whispered, sounding and feeling really scared at that realization.

Naruto merely shook his head.

"How are you doing that?" she asked.

He shrugged. He honestly didn't know.

"That... this is... Sasuke," none of them even noticed the lack of honorific, but because of it paid the girl more attention, "What he's doing is impossible! Ino has shown me her jutsu a couple times. I also had a Yamanaka mind-walker examine me as part of the Academy yearly physical." Both boys nodded, having also had the same thing happen to them. It was standard procedure. "Yamanakas use hand seals and usually have physical contact and there's always some effort in using the jutsu. I didn't see Naruto use handseals and he's doing this effortlessly."

'_I'm also in several minds at the same time,_' his telepathic voice pointed out, '_Yours and Kakashi-sensei's and a few other people across the Village. The Hokage is watching us, or rather Kakashi-sensei and my clones, in his Crystal Ball right now._'

Sasuke and Sakura shared a wide-eyed look with each other. Sasuke then tried something. _Naruto, can you hear me?_

'_Yes. I've now made it so Sakura can too, and you can hear her. Well... both hers._'

_What do you mean both hers_? Sasuke was curious.

_Sasuke... I can hear you... in my head!_ Sakura was feeling her head with both hands, her eyes wide.

_**Shanyero! Sasuke's in my head! Sasuke's in my head! Shanyero!**_

Sasuke stumbled and backpedaled away from Sakura, panicked eyes going back and forth between Naruto and Sakura. "Wh-wh-wh..." he started muttering, and then finished the thought, _What the hell was that?!_

'_The other Sakura. She's kind of obsessed with you,_' Naruto gleefully answered, enjoying the look on Sasuke's face for as long as he could.

Sakura frowned. _What 'other' Sakura? What are you talking... er, thinking about, Naruto?_

_**Naruto-baka! Stop teasing Sasuke-kun! Shanyero!**_

Naruto merely remained silent and grinning.

_Omigawd!_ Sakura gasped, her hands going to her mouth, which hadn't actually made a noise.

_**Omigawd!**_

"OK, what is that?" Sasuke whispered, "And can you please stop it. I just wanted to see if it would work or not."

Naruto shrugged and both of his teammates lost the sense of being able to hear each other, which was proven as they voiced several thoughts and were grateful to see no outward reaction. Except from Naruto.

"You can still hear us, can't you?" Sasuke confirmed. Naruto merely nodded, still grinning.

Sakura suddenly turned red and punched Naruto in the head, screaming, "BAKA!" Only, at the last possible second, Naruto successfully dodged to the side and Sakura hit only dirt. Sasuke's eyebrow went up, showing his sudden interest.

"Hn, this has possibilities," he said, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

Naruto mimicked his raised eyebrow, intrigued a bit himself at the thoughts racing through Sasuke's mind at that moment.

When Kakashi, finally, came out of the woods, a little worse for wear, he found a sight most unexpected. Naruto and Sasuke, Uzumaki and Uchiha, training together. The Uchiha was even showing the Uzumaki a few tips on improving and actually helping him rather than just criticizing him endlessly. Sakura, under the guidance of both boys, was working herself into the ground through a calisthenics program that should have been a breeze for a genin, but actually had the girl drenched in sweat.

"My, what do we have here?" the Jounin Sensei questioned as he walked up, dusting himself off.

Sakura suddenly adjusted her calisthenics so that she could swing by the three stumps and then jogged past the two boys. She handed each of them something and then they both tossed him a bell, each. He caught them and looked at them closely. He analyzed everything he'd gone through for the past half hour or so, and was suitably impressed.

"And if I told you that because she doesn't have one, Sakura fails?" he asked them. The girl stumbled and fell to the ground. The boys never stopped their motions, not even for a moment.

"I would say that without her, we never would have gotten them in the first place," Sasuke remarked coldly, "And that she has potential. If she's my teammate, she's my teammate, and I won't abandon her."

"And I would say, BULL SHIT! Kakashi-sensei," Naruto replied as respectfully as one could in the middle of training.

"Hmph, OK, you pass," Kakashi sighed, really wishing he could have gone on that S-Rank mission instead of babysitting a bunch of genin for who knows how long. He didn't even get to have any fun with them.

Naruto grinned and winked at both his teammates.

TBC...?


	78. GODS Part 6

**G.O.D.S.**

Chapter 3 Lies

It had been three weeks since the end of the Pack, as Xander liked to think of it. He had kept up the premise that he didn't remember any of it, and truth be told he really didn't want that to be a lie anymore than the girls thought it was.

It was after that that Xander noticed that seemingly on every Monday and Tuesday, something weird happened. More than just patrolling for vamps though. Like, last Monday three weeks ago, they had gone to the Zoo.

The next Monday, three super vamps known only as "The Three" chased down Buffy, with the mysterious-o Angel. Thankfully they hadn't shown back up, but the next night Joyce, Buffy's mother, had been attacked by a vampire in their own home. At first everybody thought it was the revealed-to-be-a-vamp Angel, but it turned out to be his sire, an old vampire named Darla. Too bad Deadboy earned his good guy rep back by staking her.

And last week… Well, Buffy has a vampire, Xander had a giant Praying Mantis demon…Willow got a computer virus demon, and not one of the ones made by a hacker. Who knew life on the Hellmouth could be so dangerous to your love life?

At the moment though, Xander was just taking a stroll through the Inbetween…testing himself.

It had all started with that last fight between him and the Hyena, just before the spell had been reversed. For just a moment, Xander was almost certain he could have beaten the spell that held him trapped. Unfortunately, or maybe very fortunately, he had never gotten the chance to prove it.

But that…energy thing that he had done… He had never done anything like that before, that he could remember. And, when he tried it the next night afterwards, he was surprised to find that it was not only in dreams and his own mind that he could generate and control energy.

Well…energy was too broad a term for it. It was more like a variety of mental plasma, but static electricity too. It was also incredibly unstable and required hard concentration in order to control in any way. Which was why he was practicing.

After looking around for a moment, Xander stopped where he was, no other dreamers actually nearby, so one could say he was in a "clearing" of the Inbetween. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths. He focused his mind inward, feeling every molecule of his body, both the one asleep in his house and the astral one on the Inbetween, and then he went deeper, and felt the fire he had touched in fighting the Hyena spirit. It seemed to run beneath and throughout every cell of his being, but deeper than that at the same time.

Once he found it, it was a simple matter of concentrating to focus the fire to expand to where he could control it as easily as he controlled his body. Which was becoming exceedingly easier, with practice over the weeks. He opened his eyes as he focused a stream of the fire, his mental energy, out of him and into the air before him.

It was barely a tendril really, not enough to start a fire, but enough to move the "wind" of the space around him. As he focused further, he realized he could actually see the energy he was generating and controlling, and with a smile, he twisted the stream of fire around so that a twister started just a few meters in front of him.

He poured forth with more energy, and the twister got bigger, despite that the shape and size of the stream he controlled remained unchanged.

Experimenting, he sent out another tendril behind him, but this, he did not twist or shape, instead just letting it flow. A jet stream of wind blasted out from Xander's back.

Curious about something, Xander began to increase the "heat" of the energy coming out behind him. The "ground" of the Inbetween immediately scorched wherever the hot wind hit it. Xander smiled, manipulating the energy in front of him so there were two twisters now.

Behind him, he stopped raising the temperature, and just as quickly got it to drop just as much as it had been raised, and a little bit more. The wind turned cold, and the scorches, which were slowly healing, suddenly turned to solid ice. And then…as Xander further slowed the speed of the energy, but not the amount, the wind blasting out from him…became water. Cold water too.

Fascinated by this sudden change and new discovery, Xander kept lowering the temperature, while coming out with four twisters before him. Before he knew it, solid ice chunks, almost spears, but more hailstones, were coming out from behind him.

Keeping up the flow of ice and the now quadruple tornado, Xander wanted to see what his range was. Without directing the energy from his body, he imagined and commanded a fire to ignite off to his left. Surprisingly, he felt a slight tug and a drain on the "fire" within him, which he was beginning to realize, was his mental energy. The fire to his left, with nothing but air around it, ignited in a fireworks burst, and staying lit and burning bright like any normal fire, came to life barely a half second after Xander had given the command.

Concentration was key to this exercise, but also, Xander noticed, a test on his endurance as well. He had no idea how long he could actually keep all of this up, or how much doing any more would cut from that time. He planned on finding out tonight.

Keeping up the ice field behind him, He began to move the multiple tornados in front of him in random directions, but not together, separate so that each tornado moved on its own as a real tornado might. He also commanded the fire to his left to reshape itself. It did so without hesitation or problems. Nodding that it was good, Xander took a deep breath and closed his eyes to help focus his concentration for what he did next.

Diz had been showing him all the "tricks" one could do with mental energy for the past few weeks. Xander, of course, could not do all of it immediately, but he now knew what to strive for. The basics, like mental shielding, finding ones mental energy within themselves, and thought-manipulation, aka mind control, were the first things Xander had learned.

Now, because Diz _did_ have a life outside of teaching Xander how to use his powers, Xander was on his own for a while, and was using that time appropriately. But what Xander wanted to do next would not exactly be what his teacher would call "safe practice".

Xander created a mental shield in the shape of a dome, the simplest and most basic form of a mental shield, about ten kilometers off to his right, about five meters in radius. Once it was solid and he was sure of it's sturdiness, he opened his eyes and turned to face the dome.

He touched his controls of each of his elemental creations and poured _more_ power into them. The ice field suddenly became a real, life size Glacier; the five twisters suddenly became a Hurricane that ate Class 5 tornados for breakfast and desert; and the fire became a standing inferno in the shape of a human female. Any features besides those were too obscured in the flames, but the fire-giant stood on the same scales as the Glacier and Hurricane.

Noting the size increase, Xander made it so the shield was now five _kilometers _in diameter. The shield still held and maintained its sturdiness.

Adjusting the flow of power, Xander mentally commanded his Elementals to attack the Shield, which he suddenly envisioned as a larger mountain instead of just a dome. Immediately, and together, the three attacked with such ferocity that Xander was amazed that they had come from him. The Glacier started by throwing Ice missiles the size of the Statue of Liberty, but when they did not penetrate, instead just broke up into thousands of pieces, the shards did not go flying everywhere, they returned to attack the Shield again, and again if they were broken up again, and again, and again. Until the Glacier got to the Shield itself and tried to do what it was known to do, reshape and topple mountains into valleys with the sheer force of its motion and mass.

The Hurricane tried something similar, shooting lightning bolts and even a few hailstones at the Shield, until finally it too reached the Shield and then it really let loose. Tunnels, or maybe vines, of wind that could strip a Rhinoceros to the bone in less than ten seconds dove down, tips pointed outwards, and tried to drill a weak spot into the Shield, or at least try to find one. The Shield still held.

The Fire Giant was the most interesting as it tried to attack the shield as a human might have, using it's fists, feet, and physical attacks to try and break it. Amazingly enough, the presence of each other, fire next to ice and wind next to fire, did not seem to bother the Elementals in the slightest. The Glacier did not melt, and the Fire Giant was not blown back by the Hurricane's presence or its own wind blasts. Xander came to the conclusion that because they were actually nothing more than mental energy created by him and he had not thought, when creating them, that they might be able to harm one another this made it so they did not harm one another accidentally.

The Fire Giant finally gave up on physical attacks and began to use what she was actually and quite literally made of. First, fireballs the size of the pyramids struck the Shield with much the same effect as the Ice missiles. And then a whip, followed by two whips, of fire continuously and only hitting the Shield, never even grazing the other two elementals. It stayed with this type of attack for a while longer.

Xander nodded again, pleased with what he was seeing, as well as his ability to maintain the shield. He had adjusted it so that shield actually had _less_ power than each of the elementals, but Xander was also maintaining the structure and form of the shield, and with each attack, he adjusted it so that the frequency and ability of the shield shifted, so that wherever an ice crystal hit, the shield was extra hot so it melted the shard, and where wind struck, it was the soft, but unmoving, like clay, and where fire struck it was the same as if it struck stone.

He poured more power into the Elementals and the hits became twice as powerful. The Shield remained the same. Xander increased the speed of the Elementals, and that's where the Shield began to show some weakness, and Xander's concentration would have been enough to give him a nosebleed, for real, if he hadn't been a god, as he tried to keep up.

Another idea suddenly struck him, no pun intended. Xander raised his arms above his head, his eyes closed as he did what Diz had instructed him to when summoning lightning. He excited the molecules of his dream body so they were all "negatively" charged and almost at the precise moment he would have wished it, a bolt of hellish white lightning struck down from the starry sky of the Inbetween and surrounded him with the white fire.

Now that he was surrounded by the element, Xander knew precisely how to summon forth this from his own reserves of mental energy without having to 'summon' it again. Rather than create another elemental though, Xander gathered all the power from around him, and pointed his hands in a shooting gesture straight at the Shield… and fired.

At first the lightning just danced around and around the Shield, until Xander realized that he could manipulate the lightning the same way he could manipulate the shield and began to play with each. Being his first time, and the beginnings of a headache on the edge of his mind, Xander couldn't do much, but the lightning stopped dancing around the Shield and continued to strike it at one point as a beam of power rather than trying to electrocute it.

Xander kept up this display for at least another half hour, sometimes learning a new form of attack the Elementals could use, or that he could use. The Shield held for as long as he could, but finally, the strain became too much, on both his mental energy and his concentration. First, the lightning and his own attacks against it stopped, and then slowly, one by one, the Elementals forced cracks into the Shield, and just before each of them would have delivered a simultaneous blow that would have shattered the Shield, they disappeared themselves, Xander no longer able to maintain them.

There was a very eerie silence on the Inbetween after everything stopped, Xander lying on the semi-existing ground on his knees from exhaustion. The Inbetween was normally, no pun intended, quieter than sleep, but after the incredible racket Xander had just finished making, the quiet seemed strangely unwelcome.

And just as suddenly, the break in that silence was just as unwelcome.

Clapping came from behind a wall in the mists, until the dream walker, and potentially fellow god stepped through the wall, still clapping his hands.

Xander looked up and suddenly cursed himself for using all his energy like that, staring untrustingly at the stranger, but still on his knees and breathing rather hard. The god, if that is what he was, was unfamiliar to Xander. He was about average height, just under six feet, with black hair done in a rather simple, not-too-fancy style, and white, lightly tanned skin. It was his dress (clothing, not an actual dress) that finally made up Xander's mind as he saw he wore a black leather jacket with the same upper chest/shoulder armor and carried a weapon over his back, which looked like a scimitar from what Xander could tell of it from his position. He also wore blue jeans, ordinary tennis shoes, and a yellow T-shirt.

"Very impressive. Let me guess, you're new to this whole thing?" the god asked, amusement clear in his voice.

Xander just nodded, only breathing for the moment.

"Shouldn't wear yourself out like that in a place like this, leaves you kind of defenseless," the god observed.

Finally, Xander had regained enough breath to speak, "I have a few… powerful friends. And I still have yet to meet a Warlord, but I'm not holding my breath, as you can see." He went back to regaining the rest of his breath as he stumbled to his feet. The god just stayed where he was, observing Xander with a wry look on his face.

"Name's Zak. Care to explain why you woke me up from my dream just a little bit ago?" he asked, gesturing at the empty field before them, at which the center of Xander stood.

Xander shrugged and managed to return the wry grin as he felt his strength slowly returning. "Just practicing. And sorry, I only know about three others of… our kind. Didn't know you were here to warn or ask permission. If you want I can go someplace else…?" Xander started to ask, but Zak gestured for him to wait.

"No, it's all right. It just intrigued me that a god would be causing such random and… _useless_ noise in the middle of the Inbetween is all. And not that I'm asking you to, but before you go would you mind telling me your name?" Zak interrupted.

"Xander," he offered casually, suddenly finding themselves face to face. He loved the Inbetween.

"And I was practicing my mental powers. They only awakened about three and a half weeks ago, over a week after my physical Awakening finished. Not real pleasant when you live in a house with two drunks and a pile of dirty laundry ten feet away, let me tell you."

Zak winced in sympathy. "Ouch. Mine wasn't quite so bad, but you have my sympathies man. I've only been around for about ten years or so. I found out my Special skill not too long ago actually, just under a year now."

"Oh? Cool, so what can you do?" Xander asked, suddenly very interested.

Zak smiled almost perversely. "Time stop. Actually it's not stopping time so much as putting myself in a faster dimension of it. I call it HyperTime. It's pretty cool."

"Aw man, that sounds awesome! I am like so jealous. And you've been a god ten years and it's taken you this long to figure out your special skill?" Xander exclaimed.

Zak shrugged. "Hey, we're immortal, what can we do? Hey, you wouldn't happen to be the same 'Xan' than Ron, Kes, and the old fart Diz rescued a couple weeks back, are you? The newbie that got possessed by Masai animal spirits?"

"It's… a bit more complicated than that," Xander stuttered through his blush, scratching the back of his neck. "But yeah, that's me."

"Heh. Don't sweat it. Stuff like that… well, not exactly like that, happens to the newbies a lot. Just be glad you're all right and you got Ron looking after you. You know he was Kes's teacher too?" Zak pointed out.

"I figured that after knowing them for a while," Xander replied. "Plus, Kes went and got him the minute she found me, so I had to assume she knew he was a teacher somewhere along the line. They could have taught me mental shielding though. It wasn't as hard as they said it was, Diz proved that when it was the first thing he taught me and I mastered it in a single night."

"Oh? Mastered it have you?" Zak asked, incredulousness in his voice.

Xander smirked knowingly. "Yep. Mastered. I thought you said you were watching that back there?"

"There's a difference between throwing energy at your own shield and stopping the attacks of something entirely else Xan!" Zak protested. "Want me to prove it to you?"

"If I wasn't completely drained after that exercise I just put myself through, I'd totally take you up on that. Being as I'm so tired that I could fall asleep while I'm already asleep, I'll have to ask for a rain check. Sorry I pulled you from your dreams Zak man."

Zak shrugged and offered his hand. "No prob. I get bored since it looks like I'm the only god in this part of the Inbetween mostly. Nice meeting you Xan."

"Nice meeting you too Zak," Xander took the god's hand and they shook and departed each other's company in friendship. The moment Xander was on the path to his own dreams though, he faded from the Inbetween, sleeping dreamlessly.

Sunnydale High

Xander was a god. Not **THE** God, or a teenage idol god, or even a descendant of Zeus. At least as far as he knew, on that last one. He was one of a race that had existed since time began, and even just a little bit before then too. His legacy was to protect the world from the possibility of re-invasion by the Old Ones or the Old Gods, the ones that had been here before mortal man was.

Since he was best friends with the Slayer, a supernaturally endowed girl named Buffy Summers that is destined to hunt, fight, and kill the off shoots of the Old Ones in the form of demons and most often vampires, his own destiny wasn't too far off. He also held untold powers, which makes his body the quite literal interpretation of perfection, physically speaking. He had access to the human brain's full potential, granting him further power and knowledge, as well as never needing to study ever again for school, and to top it all off what made him even more powerful was a power known only as "Special skill" that potentially makes him more powerful than every Old One that ever existed or will exist.

There were only about three down sides to being one of the most powerful beings on the planet. One, the only people he could tell or even _hint_ his true nature to was others of his kind, two, Xander only discovered this about himself little less than a month ago and he has little to absolutely no idea how to use all his great power, and three, because of the morals, (not to mention his own morals), of his race he can't abuse his power to get whatever he wants, such as making his best friend the Slayer fall in love with him, or even beat up the Jocks that were beating him up. Or were trying to anyway…

"Hold still Harris!" Larry shouted as he wildly threw another punch at Xander's head. Xander watched the fist travel in almost slow motion with his eyes and when it was about a foot away, he moved himself out of the way, in the same fashion one might step out of a dodge ball's path, and Xander could easily testify to having experience in that area.

"Explain the part to me where I would _want_ to do that?" Xander asked panickly after dodging the hit.

Despite the fact that he had no reason to be afraid, Xander found that he still was. But not for fear of revealing his ultimate secret, not because he was afraid he had too little enough control to keep from killing Larry, and not even because the new, temporary Principal, a horrid little troll named Snyder, would be on him faster than acne and have him in detention or suspended. Nope, Xander was not afraid for any good reason.

He was afraid because he had always been afraid of Larry beating him up, and some habits, especially those of emotion, are very hard to break. Even for gods.

Larry, for the most part, ignored Xander's question and just tried to hit him again. Xander dodged out of the way just in time again. As a part of his "human powers" Xander's senses are beyond what even most members of the animal kingdom could rank, and from the moment Larry "bumped" into him and accused _Xander_ of bumping into _him_ and started this whole fight, Xander had been fighting them. Adrenaline had started pumping throughout his system and part of that is that in a normal human, their senses get amped up. For Xander, 'amped up' would leave him blind, deaf, and probably deficit of his sense of smell as well for several minutes.

They were in the quad, and it was nearing lunch period, so not many people were around, but those that were, were paying close attention to the entire encounter.

"Larry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…" Xander tried to apologize, his voice squeaking near the end.

"Save it!" Larry shouted and tried to kick Xander. The young god just back flipped up onto the wall directly behind him, kicked off of it, and landed behind Larry, facing the behemoth jock, all in a single second.

"If you don't mind, I'm going to run away now," Xander informed Larry's back and ran as fast as he could, making sure that his surroundings didn't suddenly blur, into the building. Luckily, Xander was out of sight before Larry turned all the way around. The jock's face suddenly grew red as his anger and humiliation began to pile up on each other.

Sunnydale High

_The Lounge_ (AN: This is the place where those couches and soda machines are that most "talk" scenes take place at on the show)

"So that's all he said?" Willow asked as she and Buffy walked up the small stairs and sat on the free couch. They had already eaten Lunch and were now enjoying their brief absence of class during the school day hours.

"Yeah," Buffy said sadly. "Then he did that thing where he like just vanishes into thin air. I wish he would teach me how to do that. Instead, every time we see each other he _still_ only wants to talk about…" Buffy paused and looked around and then substituted "vampires and demons" with, "you know, "work". Even…even after we kissed… It's just really starting to get annoying. I'm beginning to think he doesn't even like me."

"Well, at least your demon-beau is still around, so maybe you're destined to get a second shot," Willow wryly commented. Buffy smiled and stifled a chuckle.

Xander came quickly up to them, but seeing them relaxed, forced himself to relax before coming up to them and plopping down on the couch across from them, which amazingly enough was also free.

"Hey! So what we talkin' about?" he asked with a stupid grin on his face. He couldn't help it, after being on an adrenaline high from running from Larry, being around his two bestest friends in the whole world made him extra giddy.

"Oh, I ran into Angel last night on patrol. He had a book that Giles needed and he told me he could get another couple within a few days. That Watcher of mine was very thrilled I must say. Musta been some important book." Buffy answered sounding not at all interested in the conversation, making sure her voice sounded extra dry when she mentioned Angel.

"Uh huh," Xander nodded. Despite still having vague impressions of the former Pack, Xander had finally realized and answered why that was. He could still sense them, even after all these weeks, because they had been connected before. And not just because of the Pack link or a casual empathy thing, but a full memory in memory, mind-to-mind connection, and those kinds of links lasted for lifetimes at a time. Xander had never had such a connection, yet, with Buffy or Willow, so ever since; he had been working at changing that, reaching into their minds at every opportunity.

He never invaded on their privacy, and he always ignored their private thoughts, except when they were about him of course, and he didn't go near their memories. Mostly all that was conveyed through his linking with them were emotions, which he naturally analyzed anyway through their physical status, and then something akin to blips on sonar, except on a mental level. Xander couldn't explain that one yet, but it seemed to only happen with those he was actively linked too, Pack included.

At the moment, Buffy was feeling all the equivalents to a girl being crushed by her big crush. Xander empathized, but he did not feel sympathy for the crusher. "And the fact that he practically ignored the fact that less than two weeks ago you shared an amazing kiss and treated you and everything else like it was "business" as normal, would it?" Xander raised his fingers as he quoted the word.

Buffy grimaced, which almost became a scowl as she asked, "How do you always do that?"

Xander shrugged, still grinning stupidly. "It's a gift," he answered a little too smugly.

"It's an annoying gift," Buffy said back, sounding dangerous enough that Xander quickly lost the smirk and the feeling he'd had when Larry was trying to hit him suddenly came back. Only this time it was because of the look in Buffy's eyes. Not to speak of her emotions.

"Anyway, it's not really that important. What Angel did, or much rather _didn't_ do, is not a topic of discussion I want to converse in right now. And what do you care about Angel anyway?" Buffy demanded.

"Hey, it's me! If Angel's doing something wrong, I wanna know!" Xander exclaimed, emphasizing his point by pointing his finger at the ground. At their curious and confused looks, confused was Willow and curious was Buffy, he added with a smile that just wouldn't quit, "Cause it gives me a happy."

"Enh! Glad someone has a happy," Buffy sarcastically commented, sticking her tongue out at her friend.

"Aw you just need cheering up," Xander said forthrightly. "I know just the thing!"

Buffy and Willow paused and looked at him, almost expectantly, but more like they weren't expecting much, just hoping for it. Without thinking, or checking in on their thoughts, Xander invoked a drugged hippie disco-dancer as he told them, "Crazed dance party at the Bronze!"

Both girls didn't really say no, so much as drooped their shoulders and moped as Buffy mumbled, "Uhh… no."

Xander stopped dancing and started thinking, listening for their emotions and any clear thoughts they might think about him. He was getting disappointment off Willow, but major depression from Buffy.

"Very calm dance party at the Bronze?" he offered, his movements less jerky and more side-to-side.

Buffy looked him in the eye and even without powers Xander knew what she was thinking and wanted. "Moping at the Bronze," he nailed on and sat down next to Willow.

"I'd suggest a box of Oreos dunked in a glass of apple juice, but maybe she's over that phase," a male voice said just behind the Slayer.

Xander shook his head as he got the first thing resembling a headache he'd had in over a month, since long before his Awakening. First, Buffy's emotions shifted so suddenly that he was almost thrown into the mental version of whiplash, but they continued to shift, as were Willow's, so much so he couldn't begin to keep track, let alone identify what each girl was feeling at that moment.

And then there was the other thing. It was… it was like… static. Interference, but… different. There was no _one_ way to describe whatever it was. It affected his ability to mentally hear, clearly anyway, the girls or even anyone else around him, but at the same time, all of his senses went into hyperdrive. Not overload hyperdrive, but more like adrenaline-rush, 'I'm-in-danger' hyperdrive. What was worse… he couldn't nail down what was causing it. For now, which he knew even now he would regret later, he ignored it all.

And focused on the boy, about his height, his hair, just a little bit more gangly than himself, that currently held _all_ of the Slayer's attention.

"Ford?" Buffy gasped in shock, and then they reached for each other, her up, him down, to hug like longtime friends.

"Hey Summers," he, Ford, said as they embraced, "How ya been?"

"Oh my gawd! What are you doing here?" she asked as they separated. Xander couldn't help noticing that she held both of his hands in hers.

"Uh, matriculating," he answered.

"Huh?"

"I'm finishing up my Senior year at Sunnydale High. Dad got transferred," Ford explained. In the background the crunching of wood could barely be heard over the din of students. Xander quickly dusted his hand off.

"This is great!" Buffy exclaimed.

"Glad you think so. Didn't think you'd remember me," Ford said, staring deeply into Buffy's eyes. Xander glared up at his latest rival. Hearing about Angel on the outs with Buffy had put him in a good mood, even after the slight fiasco with Larry. Consider his good mood on permanent strike so long as this bozo was in Sunnydale city limits.

"Remember you?" Buffy repeated in disbelief. "DUH! We only went to school for like 7 years. You were my giant 5th grade crush." '_Omigawd! Why did I just say that out loud? Willow and Xander are here! What is Ford doing here?!'_ Xander heard Buffy's thoughts quite clearly.

"SO!" Xander near-shouted to interrupt, drawing both Buffy and Ford's attentions to him, "You two know each other?"

"Oh!" Buffy startled, almost like she had been drawn out of a trance, "I'm sorry, this is Ford," she briefly lapsed back into that dreamy-stare as she looked Ford in the eyes, then snapped back out of it as she introduced her friends to her old friend, "Uh, Billy Ford. This is Xander and Willow," she pointed at each as she said their names.

Xander and "Billy Ford's" eyes met briefly, and for that one instant, _all_ of Xander's hyperactive senses focused straight on Ford… just before being knocked back by something he couldn't begin to explain. He shook his head again.

"Hi," Xander smarmily remarked.

"Hey" Ford remarked, not really looking at Xander.

"Nice to meetcha," Willow answered. Xander, just from those five syllables, knew his longest friend was already smitten with the newcomer.

"Ford and I went to Hemery together in LA," Buffy was explaining, "And now you're here? For real?"

"Dad got the transfer, and boom…" he shrugged, "he dragged me out of Hemery and put me down here."

Xander was already bored. He tried to find what the hell was making his senses go haywire. It wasn't so much distracting as… annoying, and disconcerting.

"So you two were sweeties in 5th grade?" Willow asked, a wide grin on her face. '_Maybe if Xander sees that Buffy isn't available, he'll start paying more attention to me,'_ Willow thought. Xander looked over at his best friend as if she were crazy.

"Not even," Buffy went back to staring dreamily into his eyes, "Ford wouldn't even give me the time of day."

"Well… I was a manly 6th grader. I couldn't bother with someone that young," he excused his past behavior, barely breaking eye contact once with the Slayer. And even then it was just to barely glance at Xander.

"It was terrible. I moped over you for _months_," Buffy tried to glare instead of stare dreamy-eyed into her old friend's eyes. "Sitting in my room listening to that Divinal song "_I touch myself_"…" she paused and briefly looked over to Xander and Willow, a light blush spreading through her cheeks before she continued, "…Of course I had no idea what it was about."

'_Sure you didn't,'_ Buffy heard Xander's voice in her mind, while physically he had a smarmy grin on his face as he nodded "understandingly".

"Hey!" Buffy suddenly exclaimed, despite the minor weirdness just now, "You busy tonight? We're going to the Bronze, it's the local club and you _have_ to come."

Ford looked slightly surprised for a moment and the blurted out, "I'd love to," and then he half-turned to face Willow and Xander as well, "But, if you guys already had plans, would I be imposing." He paused to share a strange look with Xander.

Xander, still with the smarmy grin on his face, joked, "Ahh, only in the literal sense," while waving it off as though he were welcoming Ford's interruption. While privately he was beginning to regret that he couldn't test his strength by ripping the boy apart with his bare hands.

"OK then!" he stood up, "I-I, uh, I gotta find the admissions office. Get my papers in order."

"Well, you know what, I'll take you there, and I'll see you guys in French," the Slayer said rather quickly, and before either friend could say or do anything about it, she and Ford were walking away, arm-in-arm.

"It was good to meet you," Ford said to Xander, and the young god couldn't help but feel a chill run down his back as though a vampire or something worse had just said the same words.

Normally he would have joked at the departing friend of Buffy, male friend that is. But the whole encounter just left him feeling…wigged out the extreme. He just couldn't summon the energy from being terrified to make fun of the boy. Not to mention a slight bit of pride at being able to insert his thoughts into Buffy's mind. He wasn't quite sure, but somehow he just _knew_ that he had succeeded with that one jibe that made the Slayer blush slightly more pinkish than she had been.

Suddenly Willow exclaimed beside him as he stared hatefully at the departing couple, "Oh! _That's_ what that song is about?" Xander didn't even bother looking back at her, knowing her expression better than probably she did.

_To Be Continued..._


	79. HPZ Preview

HPZ: Hogwarts Saga

_Philosopher's Stone Arc_

Summary:

YAHRBDRF Harry is raised by Goku and ChiChi, and is the adopted brother of Gohan. On top of being one of those saving the universe, Harry discovers on his eleventh birthday that he's a wizard and has to go to magic school for seven years.

Author: Joshua

Disclaimer: JK Rowling has Harry, and whoever else from the books show up in these plots. I don't own either and I'm not making any money from all this, so don't bother suing me. DBZ and all characters and concepts are owned by Funimation and Toei Animation.

Author's Notes: YAHRBDRF = Yet Another Harry Raised By Different Relatives Fanfic. Rather than Petunia, ChiChi is Lily's sister and Harry is more or less Gohan's age, the only difference would be by a few weeks-months, same as with Dudley. Harry was taken by Piccolo along with Gohan and given "survival training". Unlike Gohan, who used speed and strength and his overwhelming ki power to survive, Harry used his uncontrollable accidental magic. They both fought the Saiyans together, Harry not being as powerful as Gohan but still plenty powerful enough to catch Vegeta's attention.

Harry stayed behind to "take care of dad" and then joined Goku on his ship, actually able to keep up with Goku's gravity training, though mostly by meditating rather than blowing himself up. While Goku came closer to being a Super Saiyan, Harry gained total control over his magic and was able to wield it like he could his ki. By the time of the Namek Saga, he had full magic control, but knew very few if any actual spells. He tag-teamed Frieza with Gohan and actually hurt the monster more than a little. After he had his 'potential' unleashed by the Namek Elder as Gohan and Krillin had, he Apparated back to the fight to help Goku against Level 4 Frieza, holding the monster back while Goku prepared his Spirit Bomb. After that, he was transported home by the Dragon, same as everyone else while Goku and Frieza stayed behind.

As far as special abilities of HPZ-Harry compared to Canon-Harry, Canon-Harry had to struggle and practice his spells a lot and it took him a few weeks to months to get good at any particular magical skill, such as Occlumency. HPZ-Harry only needs to see a spell performed properly once and he can do it perfectly after that. As for magical skills, it drops from weeks and months to hours and days. HPZ-Harry can also fly, is as strong as Gohan post-Namek, pre-Android Saga, and can perform the Kamehameha as well as his matching technique to Gohan's Masenkoha, the Tenshika - an energy beam attack modeled after Piccolo's Special Beam Canon, charging burning red energy spheres out to the side, and then bringing them together in front of him, and projecting the spiraling red spheres with a wave of red-orange energy. He also learned basic energy attacks and energy manipulation from both Piccolo, Goku and Master Roshi's sister the Witch.

Every other difference will be covered in-story.

Timeline begins shortly after Future-Trunks comes to warn of the Androids. Assume that Trunks, Frieza and King Cold arrived some time in early June or late May. Prophecy states that the Androids arrive "3 years from now, on May 12 at 10:00 A.M. near South City."

Author Notes 2: This is a ***PREVIEW******* of an ongoing series that I am, well, "publishing" over at the Tenhawk Presents website and e-group. The complete Chapter 1, and subsequent chapters can be found at ( fanfiction . tenhawkpresents com viewstory . php?sid=368). Apologies about FFNet's discrimination against URLs, you can also just do a google search for "Evilguy HPZ" and that should provide an accurate link. Please leave reviews, both here and on the THP site. Reviews put me in a better mood, and when I'm in a better mood, I tend to write more. And if that's not incentive enough, well no reviews put me in a sour mood and I don't write at all when I'm in a bad mood! :)

Episode 0: HPZ Preview

_Platform 9 3/4, King's Cross Station_

_London, England_

_September First_

"Come on Goku!" Chichi yelled at her husband. "What is the platform number again?"

"It's Nine and Three Quarters, Mom," Gohan answered his mother with a tolerant tone.

"Do you know how to get to it?" Harry asked his brother in all but blood. "Because that would be very helpful."

"You're the 'wizard' why don't you tell me?" Gohan growled back.

Harry sneered and shoved the older-by-a-few-weeks boy. "And since when has being a wizard been a problem for you? You certainly weren't complaining when fruit was falling on our heads in the wilderness with Piccolo!"

"Now boys, no fighting indoors, you know your mother's rules," Goku told them from behind the huge stack of trunks and other cases that he was carrying.

"OK Dad," both Harry and Gohan agreed, while still glaring at each other.

A few moments later, Harry asked Gohan, "Seriously though, what's with ragging on me about being a wizard?"

Gohan actually glared and retorted, "Like you don't know."

Harry blinked, surprised at the open hostility. "Would I ask if I did?"

"You're going to a boarding school. In Scotland."

"Yeah, and you get to hang with Dad and Piccolo and Krillin and prepare for the Androids. While I'm stuck in a dorm."

"And Mom."

"Huh?"

Speaking softer now, Gohan repeated,"I'm also at home, with Mom. I'm still home-schooled, remember?"

Harry blinked and suddenly the past month's hostility between him and his brother made a lot more sense. "Hey Mom, Gohan is coming with me to Hogwarts, right?"

"Of course not!" she snapped back, distracted by all the people and seeing no signs to Platform 9 3/4. "He didn't get a letter, unfortunately, and anyway he has to stay home and study to become a Rhodes Scholar!"

Harry's eyes went wide. "Uh, Dad, you're going to come to Hogwarts and train me, right?" he said a bit louder than strictly necessary.

Chichi stopped and physically winced at the very idea of Goku and Dumbledore meeting and spending any amount of time together. "You know what, I think I could probably work something out so that Gohan could get a scholarship deal. That way you boys can still spend time training with each other and once Harry gets his OWLs, you can come and go from home to train with your father. Until then, I don't want you unnecessarily distracted from your school work. Either one of you, do you hear me?"

"Yes ma'am," they both dutifully replied.

"Where is the blasted train platform?!" she screamed suddenly.

"Now Chichi..." Goku tried to calm his wife. Fortunately, at that moment, a large group of redheaded teens and a matronly red haired woman walked by, the woman mumbling just loud enough to be heard, "... filled with muggles..."

"Who was that, Mom?" Harry asked. "And what's a... muddle?"

Chichi frowned at the redhead family that passed them by and made their way to the divider between Platforms Nine and Ten. "Not a nice word for people without magic. Harry, don't ever let me catch you calling _anybody_ that word. Is that understood?"

Gulping, Harry quickly nodded his head and replied, "Yes ma'am!"

"Good. Now, let's see, they must be taking the portal entrance, same as we are, so where did they..." Chichi followed along after the family of red haired magic users.

"Whoa! That was neat!" Goku exclaimed all of a sudden.

"What?" Chichi asked, distracted.

"The twins that just walked through the wall, Mom," Gohan pointed. "Their energy suddenly reappeared on the other side of the train yard! One instant here, the next instant." They all watched the eldest boy of the family ran through the wall, and Goku, Gohan and Harry's heads all snapped to the right. "Over there. Definitely neat."

"That's the portal then," Chichi decided, "Let's go." They waited for the other family to finish going through, the mother and daughter going last together, and then one by one, beginning with Harry, walked through the wall. Chichi went last to make sure Goku and Gohan didn't try anything too... Saiyan with the portal.

Once they were through, it was all Chichi could do to keep her three boys, and yes Goku definitely counted as a 'boy' in this case, from flying off the platform and playing 'trains' with actual trains. Hurrying them to the red steam engine and it's passenger cars, they tried to find a free cabin for Harry to put his things in. Finding a free spot in the very last of the passenger cars, Goku put away his adopted son's trunk and then carefully picked up the other trunks and cases, easily holding onto them with little effort. They were the results of Chichi's shopping adventure from the day before.

Before much else could be said or done, the whistle sounded for the train's departure and they all scrambled to say their goodbyes.

"Now be good. You remember Cousin Hagrid, right? He'll be there when the train arrives, just stick with him and do what he says," Chichi said as she hugged him with all her might. Only his enhanced gravity training kept him conscious. "And I'll be sure to send a letter tonight to the Headmaster about the scholarship deal for Gohan, so don't expect your father to pop by for any kind of training, all right? And let me know immediately if your father ever does show up, understand me?"

"All right Mom," he grumbled, ducking his head to hide the tears in his eyes.

"I'll be seeing you soon Bro," Gohan gave his brother a 'brotherly hug'. "And sorry for being such a pain these past couple weeks. I really thought you were... well, you know."

"Hey, you could have asked!" Harry playfully shoved his 'big' brother at that.

"Don't worry about your training at first, Harry," Goku told him after they shared their own goodbye hug. "Just have fun and study and do your homework and make plenty of friends, all right! Oh, and be sure to tell me what the food is like!"

"Ha hah!" Harry laughed as he stepped onto the moving train, "Will do Dad! I'll write as soon as I get there! And don't worry, those androids won't know what hit them once I learn a few spells!"

They waved at each other until neither could see the other, which was a good two minutes longer than everyone else on the Platform, and after having finally lost sight of his family, Harry turned and made his way back to his cabin. Only to find it already occupied by the youngest boy from that red haired family.

"Oh, hello," the tall boy blushed behind his freckles. "Sorry, everywhere else is full up. Is it OK if I sit here? That is your trunk I take it?"

"Yep, that's mine, and sure I don't mind," Harry shrugged and settled himself down on the bench under his trunk.

They both sat there in a comfortable silence for about a minute, at which point it became an uncomfortable silence. "So..." the red haired boy started to say, not really sure how to react to this strange muscled boy that seemed quite comfortable in a red and blue tunic. It was actually a training gi, but the young wizard had no way of knowing that.

Luckily, they were saved from any attempts at awkward conversation by the door to their cabin slamming open and the boy's twin brothers standing there, mischievous grins on their face. "Hey Ron, we're going to meet up with Lee Jordan, he's somewhere in the middle of the train. Seems he's got this giant tarantula that he's showing off to everybody."

The boy, Ron, visibly shivered and looked down as he mumbled his response, "Yeah, whatever." Clearly he either did not like his brothers... or he did not like the mention of the giant tarantula. Having recently had troubles with his own brother, Harry suspected it was more of the latter than the former.

"Oh, who's your friend?" the one that hadn't spoken yet spoke up.

"Son Harry, adopted child of Son Goku and his wife Son Chichi," he casually introduced himself. Being the adopted son of Chichi, Princess of the Ox Kingdom of Fire Mountain, he had been trained in a number of various "formal" greetings, so what he'd offered to the twins was as casual as it got with him.

"Your parents named you 'Son'?" both twins said together.

Harry shrugged and figured their ignorance for lack of experience than any kind of insult. "Son is my family name. In my culture, the family name is given before the person's name. So as to avoid potential... breeches of honor. At least that is how it was explained to me. If you know a person's family name before you know their name, you know whether or not you can be rude without having to worry about smirching a prominent family's honor."

The three redheads just stared at him, blinking. He shrugged in reply and turned back to looking out the window. Unintentionally, this shifted his hair just enough to allow them to see the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead.

"Wait a tick, what was that?" one of the twins pointed.

"Hm? What was what?" Harry turned.

"That!" the same twin pointed again. "Are you...?"

"Well, it would make sense," his twin agreed before the question was even fully asked. "You are, aren't you?"

"What are you two...?" Ron started to ask, and then he too caught sight of the scar and his eyes went wide as his mouth hung open.

"What am I supposed to be?" Harry asked with a shrug.

"Harry Potter!" all three exclaimed at once.

"Oh, him, I mean, that. Yeah. My name before I was adopted was Potter. But now I'm Son Harry. Please keep that in mind as I refuse to acknowledge 'Potter' as my name. It's an honor thing," he added at their confused expressions.

"Blimey, you're really the Boy-Who-Lived!" Ron exclaimed.

"By the way, in case we neglected to introduce ourselves before," one of the twins began.

"Which we often do," his mirror image interjected.

"Please allow us to introduce ourselves. I'm Fred Weasley," the first one gave a short, yet dramatic bow.

"And I am the pretty one, George Weasley," the second one gave an identical bow.

"Hey, I thought I was the pretty one!" Fred argued.

"No, you're the funny one that likes to talk," George logically pointed out.

"Oh yeah, right," Fred nodded.

"Well, have fun you two!" George called as he dragged his twin out of the compartment and presumably to their original destination.

"Have a lot of brothers then?" Harry asked Ron, a note of amusement in his voice.

"Five," he grumbled in reply. "And a younger sister that will be going to Hogwarts next year."

"Huh, I only have the one. Can't be that bad, can it?" Harry tried to offer some consolation.

"Well, yeah, they're family and all that, but I get nothing but hand-me-downs. Charlie's old wand, Bill's old robes, and..." he reached into a pocket and pulled out a fat gray rat, "Percy's old pet rat."

Harry glanced at and then did a double-take at the rat. It was a wizard. He could tell that almost instantly, the energy was unmistakable. It also offered up a whole lot of questions. First of all, why Ron thought it was just an ordinary rat when quite obviously it was not, for a number of reasons. Heck, for all he knew, Ron's family were royalty and the rat was a bodyguard that they hadn't been told the true identity of. Still, it was rude to ask, so for the most part he held off on his burning questions and ignored the rat for the most part.

"Interesting. I don't actually have a pet. Well, unless you count Nimbus, but then he would be more of a family pet if one at all," Harry said.

"Nimbus?" Ron repeated as question. "Is that the name of your family owl?

"Nimbus is a cloud," Harry answered.

Ron stared and blinked a couple times before finally saying, "A cloud?"

Harry nodded. "Yep."

"Your family pet... is a cloud?" Ron said again. Finally, Harry just shrugged as though saying 'What can you do?'.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Surprised somewhat, the boys exchanged a look and then Harry stood up and opened the door to their compartment. On the other side was a girl around their age with bushy brown hair, already dressed in her school robes. Just behind her was a slightly shorter, chubby boy with dark brown, almost black hair and downcast eyes.

"Hello," the girl spoke abruptly and matter-of-factly, "Have either one of you seen a toad? Neville seems to have lost his and I'm helping him search for it."

Harry and Ron blinked and exchanged another look. Shrugging to one another, they replied in unison, "No."

"Oh, well do keep an eye out for it, would you?" she said, a bit crestfallen. The boy behind her was even more-so. Together, it was enough to tug at Harry's heartstrings.

"Wait," he called just as they were turning to go. "This toad, anything special about it? Or is it just an ordinary toad?"

"Well..." the boy, presumably Neville, started to say, but the girl interrupted.

"As far as magical, I do not believe so, although that would certainly explain how it keeps escaping us," she answered. "I'm Hermione, by the way, Hermione Granger." She then held out her hand.

Smiling, Harry bowed rather than take her hand and at the same time reached out with his senses. It was difficult, sorting through all the life signatures on board, but the fact that they were 'relatively' stationary to him helped him in narrowing it down a little. Sensing for a smaller lifeform amongst the energy of the train, the humans, their pets and other pests made it far more difficult on the other hand. Especially as all the humans and more than one of the pets were magical in nature and thus had a 'larger than normal' energy signature. Nevertheless, it helped even more that out of all the many lifeforms on board the moving train, there was only one toad. Therefore by the time he'd finished bowing to Hermione, he'd narrowed it down to the next car up, somewhere on the rear half, but no closer than that. Harry decided that his very first bit of training was to be in refining his sensing capabilities.

"I'll help you look, Hermione, Neville. That is, if you don't mind?" he offered his help.

"Oh!" she startled for some reason, but seemed to quickly agree. Neville also silently agreed to his help.

"But Harry!" Ron called, drawing a look from the adopted son of Goku and Chichi. The redhead sighed and quieted his protests and got to his feet, grumbling the whole time, "Fine. I'll help too. Stupid toad."

"Trevor," Neville spoke up suddenly.

"Sorry?" Ron snapped.

"Trevor," Neville repeated. "His name is... Trevor."

Harry had already moved to the next compartment over and once there, narrowed down what he was feeling about the toad's location. Thankfully nobody was in the washroom when he found the toad in the toilet, enjoying itself a small bath. He returned to the others even as they were still sorting out Ron's rudeness, Neville's shyness, and Hermione's need to be in control.

"Found him!" he called, holding out the toad, wrapped in a towel in effort to avoid as much contact with the toilet-water-soaked toad as possible.

"Trevor!" Neville called and immediately grabbed the toad with both hands.

"How did you find him so fast?" Hermione asked, part accusing, part startled.

"He was in the toilet down the hall," Harry replied with a shrug.

"Ew!" Ron made face, while Neville suddenly stopped holding the soaked toad so close.

"Well, does Trevor at least have a carrier case or some other place you can keep him so he doesn't keep getting out?" Hermione questioned.

"Uh... oh yeah, but... I forgot where I put it..." Neville answered.

"Maybe your trunk?" Harry suggested with a shrug.

Neville's eyes suddenly lit up and he said, "Oh yeah!"

Hermione gave the boys incredulous looks, and even Ron glanced at them a little cock-eyed. Harry just shrugged again. His father was more than a bit absentminded and so Neville's forgetfulness wasn't any kind of shock to him, and besides it was just rude to make fun of someone for having a bad memory. Going back into their compartment, Neville soon found Trevor's portable habitat, which was actually very nice considering it was magical, and then they all sat down to enjoy the rest of the train ride. A little less than an hour of steady conversation, questions and answers later, a loud growl echoed throughout their compartment.

"What was that?!" three of the children screamed after the growl had stopped.

"When do you think we can eat?" Harry asked instead, rubbing his belly as though in pain. "I'm starving!"

END "HPZ Preview"


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